GOOSE  GIRL 


337 


THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


THE  GOOSE  GIRL 


They   acclaimed   her  the   queen.      Page  380. 


THE  GOOSE  GIRL 


WITH  ILLUSTRATIONS  BY 

ANDRE  CASTAIGNE 


INDIANAPOLIS 

THE  BOBBS-MERRILL  COMPANY 
PUBLISHERS 


COPYRIGHT  1909 
THE  BOBBS-MERRILL  COMPAXY 


PRESS  OP 

BRAUNWORTH  &  CO. 

BOOKBINDERS   AND  PRINTERS 

BROOKLYN,  N.  Y. 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTEE  PAGE 

I    SOME  IN  RAGS 1 

II   AN  AMERICAN  CONSUL     .         .        .         .         .22 

III  FOR  HER  COUNTRY 41 

IV  THE  YOUNG  VINTNER      .        .        .        .        .60 
V  A  COMPATRIOT        ..•••.  76 

VI  AT  THE  BLACK  EAGLE 95 

VII    AN  ELDER  BROTHER         .        •         .         .        .113 

VIII   THE  KING'S  LETTER 133 

IX   GRETCHEN'S  DAY    ..»,..  153 

X  AFFAIRS  OF  STATE           .        .         .        •         .  173 

XI   THE  SOCIALISTS       ......  186 

XII    LOVE'S  DOUBTS        ......  206 

XIII  A  DAY  DREAM 221 

XIV  FIND  THE  WOMAN 235 

XV  THE  WRONG  MAN 256 

XVI    HER  FAN 273 

XVII   AFTER  THE  VINTAGE 290 

XVIII   A  WHITE  SCAR 305 

XIX   DISCLOSURES 313 

XX  THE  KING 329 

XXI   TWIN  LOCKETS 347 

XXII   A  LITTLE  FINGER 363 

XXIII    HAPPINESS                ....  371 


152*536 


THE  GOOSE  GIRL 


THE  GOOSE  GIRL 

CHAPTER    I 

SOME    IN    RAGS 

A^J  old  man,  clothed  in  picturesque  patches 
and  tatters,  paused  and  leaned  on  his  stout 
oak  staff.  He  was  tired.  He  drew  off  his 
rusty  felt  hat,  swept  a  sleeve  across  his  forehead, 
and  sighed.  He  had  walked  many  miles  that  day, 
and  even  now  the  journey's  end,  near  as  it  really 
was,  seemed  far  away.  Ah,  but  he  would  sleep 
soundly  that  night,  whether  the  bed  were  of 
earth  or  of  straw.  His  peasant  garb  rather  en 
hanced  his  fine  head.  His  eyes  were  blue  and 
clear  and  far-seeing,  the  eyes  of  a  hunter  or  a 
woodsman,  of  a  man  who  watches  the  shadows  in 
the  forest  at  night  or  the  dim,  wavering  lines  on 
the  horizon  at  daytime;  things  near  or  far  or 
roundabout.  His  brow  was  high,  his  nose  large 
and  bridged;  a  face  of  more  angles  than  con- 

1 


2  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

tours,  bristling  with  gray  spikes,  like  one  who 
has  gone  unshaven  several  days.  His  hands, 
folded  over  the  round,  polished  knuckle  of  his 
staff,  were  tanned  and  soiled,  but  they  were  long 
and  slender,  and  the  callouses  were  pink,  a  cer 
tain  indication  that  they  were  fresh. 

The  afternoon  glow  of  the  September  sun 
burned  along  the  dusty  white  highway.  From 
where  he  stood  the  road  trailed  off  miles  behind 
and  wound  up  five  hundred  feet  or  more  above 
him  to  the  ancient  city  of  Dreiberg.  It  was  not 
a  steep  road,  but  a  long  and  weary  one,  a  steady, 
enervating,  unbroken  climb.  To  the  left  the 
mighty  cliff  reared  its  granite  side  to  the  hang 
ing  city,  broke  in  a  wide  plain,  and  then  went  on 
up  several  thousand  feet  to  the  ledges  of  dragon- 
green  ice  and  snow.  To  the  right  sparkled  and 
flashed  a  wild  mountain  stream  on  its  way  to  the 
broad,  fertile  valley,  which,  mistily  green  and 
brown  and  yellow  with  vineyards  and  hops  and 
corn,  spread  out  and  on  to  the  north,  stopping 
abruptly  at  the  base  of  the  more  formidable  chain 
of  mountains. 

Across  this  lofty  jumble  of  barren  rock  and 
glacial  cleft,  now  purpling  and  darkening  as  the 


SOME    IN    RAGS  3 

sun  mellowed  in  its  decline,  lay  the  kingdom  of 
Jugendheit ;  and  toward  this  the  wayfarer  gazed 
meditatively,  absorbing  little  or  nothing  of  the 
exquisite  panorama.  By  and  by  his  gaze  wa 
vered,  and  that  particular  patch  in  the  valley, 
brown  from  the  beating  of  many  iron-shod 
horses,  caught  and  chained  his  interest  for  a 
space.  It  was  the  military  field,  and  it  glittered 
and  scintillated  as  squadron  after  squadron  of 
cavalry  dashed  from  side  to  side  or  wheeled  in 
bewildering  circles. 

"The  philosophy  of  war  is  to  prepare  for  it," 
mused  the  old  man,  with  a  jerk  of  his  shoulders. 
"France!  So  the  mutter  runs.  There  is  a  Na 
poleon  in  France,  but  no  Bonaparte.  Clatter- 
clatter!  Bang-bang!"  He  laughed  ironically 
and  cautiously  glanced  at  his  watch,  an  article 
which  must  have  cost  him  many  and  many  a 
potato-patch.  He  pulled  his  hat  over  his  eyes, 
scratched  the  irritating  stubble  on  his  chin,  and 
stepped  forward. 

He  had  followed  yonder  goose-girl  ever  since 
the  incline  began.  Oft  the  little  wooden  shoes 
had  lagged,  but  here  they  were,  still  a  hundred 
yards  or  more  ahead  of  him.  He  had  never  been 


4  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

close  enough  to  distinguish  her  features.  The 
galloping  of  soldiers  up  and  down  the  road  from 
time  to  time  disturbed  her  flock,  but  she  was  evi 
dently  a  patient  soul,  and  relied  valiantly  upon 
her  stick  of  willow.  Once  or  twice  he  had  been  in 
clined  to  hasten  his  steps,  to  join  her,  to  talk,  to 
hear  the  grateful  sound  of  his  own  voice,  which 
he  had  not  heard  since  he  passed  the  frontier  cus 
toms;  yet  each  time  he  had  subdued  the  desire 
and  continued  to  lessen  none  of  the  distance  be 
tween  them. 

The  little  goose-girl  was  indeed  tired,  and  the 
little  wooden  shoes  grew  heavier  and  heavier,  and 
the  little  bare  feet  ached  dully ;  but  her  heart 
was  light  and  her  mind  sweet  with  happiness. 
Day  after  day  she  had  tended  the  geese  in  the 
valley  and  trudged  back  at  evening  alone,  all 
told  a  matter  of  twelve  miles ;  and  now  she  was 
bringing  them  into  the  city  to  sell  in  the  market 
on  the  morrow.  After  that  she  would  have  little 
to  do  save  an  hour  or  two  at  night  in  a  tavern 
called  the  Black  Eagle,  where  she  waited  on 
patrons. 

On  the  two  went,  the  old  man  in  tatters,  the 
goose-girl  in  wooden  shoes.  The  man  listened; 


SOMEINRAGS  5 

she  was  singing  brightly,  and  the  voice  was  sweet 
and  strong  and  true. 

"She  is  happy ;  that  is  some  recompense.  She 
is  richer  than  I  am."  And  the  peasant  fell  into 
a  reverie. 

Presently  there  was  a  clatter  of  horses,  a  jin 
gle  of  bit  and  spur  and  saber.  The  old  man 
stepped  to  the  side  of  the  road  and  sat  down  on 
the  stone  parapet.  It  would  be  wiser  now  to  wait 
till  the  dust  settled.  Half  a  dozen  mounted  offi 
cers  trotted  past.  The  peasant  on  the  parapet 
instantly  recognized  one  of  the  men.  He  saluted 
with  a  humbleness  which  lacked  sincerity.  It  was 
the  grand  duke  himself.  There  was  General  Duc- 
witz,  too,  and  some  of  his  staff,  and  a  smooth 
faced,  handsome  young  man  in  civilian  riding- 
clothes,  who,  though  he  rode  like  a  cavalryman, 
was  obviously  of  foreign  birth,  an  Englishman 
or  an  American.  They  were  laughing  and  chat 
ting  amiably,  for  the  grand  duke  of  Ehrenstein 
bothered  himself  about  formalities  only  at  formal 
times.  The  outsider  watched  them  regretfully  as 
they  went  by,  and  there  was  some  envy  in  his 
heart,  too. 

When  the  cavalcade  reached  the  goose-girl,  the 


6  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

peace  of  the  scene  vanished  forthwith.  Confu 
sion  took  up  the  scepter.  The  silly  geese,  instead 
of  remaining  on  the  left  of  the  road,  in  safety, 
straightway  determined  that  their  haven  of  ref 
uge  was  on  the  opposite  side.  Gonk-gonk !  Quack- 
quack!  They  scrambled,  they  blundered,  they 
flew.  Some  tried  to  go  over  the  horses,  some  en 
deavored  to  go  under.  One  landed,  full-winged, 
against  the  grand  duke's  chest  and  swept  his  viz 
ored  cap  off  his  head  and  rolled  it  into  the  dust. 
The  duke  signed  to  his  companions  to  draw  up ; 
to  proceed  in  this  undignified  manner  was  impos 
sible.  All  laughed  heartily,  however ;  all  except 
ing  the  goose-girl.  To  her  it  was  far  from  being 
a  laughing  matter.  It  would  take  half  an  hour 
to  calm  her  stupid  charges.  And  she  was  so  tired. 

"Stupids !"  she  cried  despairingly. 

"From  pigs  and  chickens,  good  Lord  deliver 
us !"  shouted  the  civilian,  sliding  from  his  horse 
and  recovering  the  duke's  cap. 

Now,  the  duke  was  a  kind-hearted,  thoughtful 
man,  notwithstanding  his  large  and  complex  af 
fairs  of  state ;  as  he  ceased  laughing,  he  searched 
a  pocket,  and  tossed  a  couple  of  coins  to  the  for 
lorn  goose-girl. 


SOME    IN    RAGS  7 

"I  am  sorry,  little  one,"  he  said  gravely.  "I 
hope  none  of  your  geese  is  hurt." 

"Oh,  Highness !"  cried  the  girl,  breathless 
from  her  recent  endeavors  and  overcome  with  the 
grandeur  of  the  two  ducal  effigies  in  her  hand. 
She  had  seen  the  grand  duke  times  without  num 
ber,  but  she  had  never  yet  been  so  near  to  him. 
And  now  he  had  actually  spoken  to  her.  It  was  a 
miracle.  She  would  tell  them  all  that  night  in 
the  dark  old  Krumerweg.  And  for  the  moment 
this  prospect  overshadowed  all  thought  of  her 
geese. 

The  civilian  dusted  the  royal  cap  with  his 
sleeve,  returned  it,  and  mounted.  He  then  looked 
casually  at  the  girl. 

"By  George !"  he  exclaimed,  in  English. 

"What  is  it?"  asked  the  duke,  gathering  up 
the  reins. 

"The  girl's  face ;  It  is  beautiful." 

The  duke,  after  a  glance,  readily  agreed. 
"You  Americans  are  always  observant." 

"Whenever  there's  a  pretty  face  about,"  sup 
plemented  Ducwitz. 

"I  certainly  shouldn't  trouble  to  look  at  a 
homely  one,"  the  American  retorted. 


8  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"Pretty  figure,  too,"  said  one  of  the  aides,  a 
colonel.  But  his  eye  held  none  of  the  abstract  ad 
miration  which  characterized  the  American's. 

The  goose-girl  had  seen  this  look  in  other 
men's  eyes ;  she  knew.  A  faint  color  grew  under 
her  tan,  and  waned,  but  her  eyes  wavered  not  the 
breadth  of  a  hair.  It  was  the  colonel  who  finally 
was  forced  to  turn  his  gaze  elsewhere,  chagrined. 
His  face  was  not  unfamiliar  to  her. 

"Beauty  is  a  fickle  goddess,"  remarked  Duc- 
witz  tritely,  settling  himself  firmly  in  the  saddle. 
"In  giving,  she  is  as  blind  as  a  bat.  I  know  a 
duchess  now — but  never  mind." 

"Let  us  be  going  forward,"  interrupted  the 
duke.  There  were  more  vital  matters  under  hand 
than  the  beauty  of  a  strolling  goose-girl. 

So  the  troop  proceeded  with  dust  and  small 
thunder,  and  shortly  passed  the  city  gates,  which 
in  modern  times  were  never  closed.  It  traversed 
the  lumpy  cobbles  of  the  narrow  streets,  under 
hanging  gables,  past  dim  little  shops  and  mar 
kets,  often  unintentionally  crowding  pedestrians 
into  doorways  or  against  the  walls.  One  among 
those  so  inconvenienced  was  a  youth  dressed 
as  a  vintner.  He  was  tall,  pliantly  built,  blond 


SO  M  El  N    RAGS  9 

as  a  Viking,  possessing  a  singular  beauty  of  the 
masculine  order.  He  was  forced  to  flatten  him 
self  against  the  wall  of  a  house,  his  arms  ex 
tended  on  either  side,  in  a  kind  of  temporary 
crucifixion.  Even  then  the  stirrup  of  the  Amer 
ican  touched  him  slightly.  But  it  was  not  the 
touch  of  the  stirrup  that  startled  him ;  it  was  the 
dark,  clean-cut  face  of  the  rider.  Once  they  were 
by,  the  youth  darted  into  a  doorway. 

"He?  What  can  he  be  doing  here?  No,  it  is 
utterly  impossible ;  it  is  merely  a  likeness." 

He  ventured  forth  presently,  none  of  the  per 
turbation,  however,  gone  from  his  face.  He  ran 
his  hand  across  his  chin;  yes,  he  would  let  his 
beard  grow. 

The  duke  and  his  escort  turned  into  the  broad 
and  restful  sweep  of  the  Konig  Strasse,  with  its 
fashionable  residences,  shops,  cafes  and  hotels. 
At  the  end  of  the  Strasse  was  the  Ehrenstein 
Platz,  the  great  square  round  which  ran  the  pal 
aces  and  the  royal  and  public  gardens.  On  the 
way  many  times  the  duke  raised  his  hand  in  salu 
tations  ;  for,  while  not  exactly  loved,  he  was  liked 
for  his  rare  clean  living,  his  sound  sense  of  jus 
tice  and  his  honest  efforts  to  do  what  was  right. 


10  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

Opera-singers  came  and  went,  but  none  had  ever 
penetrated  into  the  private  suites  of  the  palace. 
The  halt  was  made  in  the  courtyard,  and  all  dis 
mounted. 

The  American  thanked  the  duke  gratefully 
for  the  use  of  the  horse. 

"You  are  welcome  to  a  mount  at  all  times,  Mr. 
Carmichael,"  replied  the  duke  pleasantly.  "A 
man  who  rides  as  well  as  yourself  may  be  trusted 
anywhere  with  any  kind  of  a  horse." 

The  group  looked  admiringly  at  the  object  of 
this  marked  attention.  Here  was  one  who  had 
seen  two  years  of  constant  and  terrible  warfare, 
who  had  ridden  horses  under  fire,  and  who  bore 
on  his  body  many  honorable  scars.  For  the  great 
civil  strife  in  America  had  come  to  its  close  but 
two  years  before,  and  Europe  was  still  captive  to 
her  amazement  at  the  military  prowess  of  the 
erstwhile  inconsiderable  American. 

As  Carmichael  saluted  and  turned  to  leave  the 
courtyard,  he  threw  a  swift,  searching  glance  at 
one  of  the  palace  windows.  Did  the  curtain  stir? 
He  could  not  say.  He  continued  on,  crossing  the 
Platz,  toward  the  Grand  Hotel.  He  was  a  bach 
elor,  so  he  might  easily  have  had  his  quarters  at 


SOME    IN    RAGS  11 

the  consulate ;  but  as  usual  with  American  consu 
lates — even  to  the  present  time — it  was  situated 
in  an  undesirable  part  of  the  town,  over  a  Bier- 
halle  frequented  by  farmers  and  the  middle  class. 
Having  a  moderately  comfortable  income  of  his 
own,  he  naturally  preferred  living  at  the  Grand 
Hotel. 

Where  had  he  seen  that  young  vintner  before  ? 

Meanwhile,  the  goose-girl  set  resolutely  about 
the  task  of  remarshaling  her  awkward  squad. 
With  a  soft,  clucking  sound  she  moved  hither 
and  thither.  A  feather  or  two  drifted  lazily  about 
in  the  air.  At  last  she  gathered  them  in,  all  but 
one  foolish,  blank-eyed  gander,  which,  poising  on 
a  large  boulder,  threatened  to  dive  headforemost 
into  the  torrent.  She  coaxed  him  gently,  then  se 
verely,  but  without  success.  The  old  man  in 
patches  came  up. 

"Let  me  get  him  for  you,  Kindchen,"  he  vol 
unteered. 

The  good-fellowship  in  his  voice  impressed  her 
far  more  than  the  humble  state  of  his  dress.  But 
she  smiled  and  shook  her  head. 

"It  is  dangerous,"  she  affirmed.    "It  will  be 


12  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

wiser  to  wait.  In  a  little  while  he  will  come  down 
of  his  own  accord." 

"Bah !"  cried  the  old  man.  "It  is  nothing ;  I 
am  a  mountaineer." 

In  spite  of  his  weariness,  he  proved  himself  to 
be  a  dexterous  climber.  Foot  by  foot  he  crawled 
up  the  side  of  the  huge  stone.  A  slip,  and  his  life 
would  not  have  been  worth  one  of  the  floating 
feathers.  The  gander  saw  him  coming  and  stirred 
uneasily.  Nearer  and  nearer  came  this  human 
spider.  The  gander  flapped  its  wings,  but  hesi 
tated  to  take  the  leap.  Instantly  a  brown  hand 
shot  up  and  caught  the  scaly  yellow  legs.  There 
was  much  squawking  on  the  way  down,  but  when 
his  gandership  saw  his  more  tractable  brothers 
and  sisters  peacefully  waddling  up  the  road,  he 
subsided  and  took  his  place  in  the  ranks  without 
more  ado. 

"You  are  a  brave  man,  Herr."  There  was  ad 
miration  in  the  girl's  eyes. 

"To  court  danger  and  to  overcome  obstacles 
is  a  part  of  my  regular  business.  I  do  not  know 
what  giddiness  is.  You  are  welcome  to  the  serv 
ice.  It  is  a  long  walk  from  the  valley." 

"I  have  walked  it  many  times  this  summer. 


But  this  is  the  last  day.  To-morrow  I  sell  the 
geese  in  the  market  to  the  hotels.  They  have  all 
fine  livers"  —  lightly  touching  a  goose  with  her 
willow  stick. 

"What,  the  hotels?"  —  humorously. 

"No,  no,  my  geese  !" 

"What  was  that  song  you  were  singing  before 
the  horses  came  up  ?" 

"That?    It  was  from  the  poet  Heine"  —  sim- 


He  stared  at  her  with  a  rudeness  not  at  all  in 
tentional. 

"Heine?   Can  you  read?" 

"Yes,  Herr." 

The  other  walked  along  beside  her  in  silence. 
After  all,  why  not?  Why  should  he  be  sur 
prised?  From  one  end  of  the  world  to  the  other 
printer's  ink  was  spreading  and  bringing  light. 
But  a  goose-girl  who  read  Heine  ! 

"And  the  music?"  he  inquired  presently. 

"That  is  mine"  —  with  the  first  sign  of  diffi 
dence.  "Melodies  are  always  running  through 
my  head.  Sometimes  they  make  me  forget  things 
I  ought  to  remember." 

"Your   own  music?     An   impresario  will  be 


14  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

discovering  you  some  fine  day,  and  your  fortune 
will  be  made." 

The  light  irony  did  not  escape  her.  "I  am 
only  a  goose-girl." 

He  felt  disarmed.    "What  is  your  name  ?" 

"Gretchen." 

"What  else?" 

"Nothing  else" — wistfully.  "I  never  knew 
any  father  or  mother." 

"So?"  This  was  easier  for  the  other  to  under 
stand.  "But  who  taught  you  to  read?" 

"A  priest.  Once  I  lived  in  the  mountains,  at  an 
inn.  He  used  to  come  in  evenings,  when  the  snow 
was  not  too  deep.  He  taught  me  to  read  and 
write,  and  many  things  besides.  I  know  that 
Italy  has  all  the  works  of  art ;  that  France  has 
the  most  interesting  history ;  that  Germany  has 
all  the  philosophers,  and  America  all  the  money," 
adding  a  smile.  "I  should  like  to  see  America. 
Sometimes  I  find  a  newspaper,  and  I  read  it  all 
through." 

"History?" 

"A  little,  and  geography." 

"With  all  this  wide  learning  you  ought  to  be 
something  better  than  a  tender  of  geese." 


SOMEINRAGS  15 

"It  is  honest  work,  and  that  is  good." 

"I  meant  nothing  wrong,  Kindchen.  But  you 
would  find  it  easier  in  a  milliner's  shop,  as  a 
lady's  maid,  something  of  that  order." 

"With  these?" — holding  out  her  hands. 

"It  would  not  take  long  to  whiten  them.  Do 
you  live  alone?" 

"No.  I  live  with  my  foster-mother,  who  is 
very  old.  I  call  her  grandmother.  She  took 
me  in  when  I  was  a  foundling ;  now  I  am  taking 
care  of  her.  She  has  always  been  good  to  me. 
And  what  might  your  name  be?" 

"Ludwig." 

"Ludwig  what  ?" —  inquisitive  in  her  turn. 

"Oh,  the  other  does  not  matter.  I  am  a 
mountaineer  from  Jugendheit." 

" Jugendheit  ?"  She  paused  to  look  at  him 
more  closely.  "We  are  not  friendly  with  your 
country." 

"More's  the  pity.  It  is  a  grave  blunder  on 
the  part  of  the  grand  duke.  There  is  a  mote 
in  his  eye." 

"Wasn't  it  all  about  the  grand  duke's  daugh 
ter?" 

"Yes.     But   she  has  been  found.     Yet  the 


16  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

duke  is  as  bitter  as  of  old.  He  is  wrong,  he  was 
always  wrong."  The  old  man  spoke  with  feel 
ing.  "What  is  this  new-found  princess  like?" 

"She  is  beautiful  and  kind." 

"So?" 

The  geese  were  behaving,  and  only  occasion 
ally  was  she  obliged  to  use  her  stick.  And  as 
her  companion  asked  no  more  questions,  she 
devoted  her  attention  to  the  flock,  proud  of  their 
broad  backs  and  full  breasts. 

On  his  part,  he  observed  her  critically,  for 
he  was  more  than  curious  now,  he  was  inter 
ested.  She  was  not  tall,  but  her  lithe  slenderness 
gave  her  the  appearance  of  tallness.  Her  hands, 
rough-nailed  and  sunburnt,  were  small  and 
shapely ;  the  bare  foot  in  the  wooden  shoe  might 
have  worn  without  trouble  Cinderella's  magic 
slipper.  Her  clothes,  coarse  and  homespun,  were 
clean  and  variously  mended.  Her  hair,  in  a 
thick  braid,  was  the  tone  of  the  heart  of  a 
chestnut-bur,  and  her  eyes  were  of  that  mysti 
fying  hazel,  sometimes  brown,  sometimes  gray, 
according  to  whether  the  sky  was  clear  or  over 
cast.  And  there  was  something  above  and  be 
yond  all  these  things,  a  modesty,  a  gentleness 


SOMEINRAGS  17 

and  a  purity;  none  of  the  bold,  rollicking, 
knowing  manner  so  common  in  handsome  peasant 
girls.  He  contemplated  her  through  half-closed 
eyes  and  gave  her  in  fancy  the  trifling  furbe 
lows  of  a  woman  of  fashion;  she  would  have 
been  beautiful. 

"How  old  are  you,  Gretchen?" 

"I  do  not  know,"  she  answered,  "perhaps 
eighteen,  perhaps  twenty." 

Again  they  went  forward  in  silence.  By  the 
time  they  reached  the  gates  the  sun  was  no 
longer  visible  on  the  horizon,  but  it  had  gone 
down  ruddy  and  uncrowned  by  any  cloud,  giv 
ing  promise  of  a  fair  day  on  the  morrow.  The 
afterglow  on  the  mountains  across  the  valley  was 
now  in  its  prime  glory ;  and  once  the  two  way 
farers  paused  and  commented  upon  it.  Once 
more  the  mountaineer  was  agreeably  surprised; 
the  average  peasant  is  impervious  to  atmos 
pheric  splendor,  beauty  carries  no  message. 

Arriving  at  length  in  the  city,  they  passed 
through  the  crooked  streets,  sometimes  so  nar 
row  that  the  geese  were  packed  from  wall  to  wall. 
Oft  some  jovial  soldier  sent  a  jest  or  a  query 
to  them  across  the  now  gray  backs  of  the  geese. 


18  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

But  Gretchen  looked  on  ahead,  purely  and  se 
renely. 

"Gretchen,  where  shall  I  find  the  Adlergasse?" 

"We  pass  through  it  shortly.  I  will  show 
you.  You  are  also  a  stranger  in  Dreiberg?" 

"Yes." 

They  took  the  next  turn,  and  the  weather- 
beaten  sign  Zum  Schwartzen  Adler,  hanging  in 
front  of  a  frame  house  of  many  gables,  caused 
the  mountaineer  to  breathe  gratefully. 

"Here  my  journey  ends,  Gretchen.  The 
Black  Eagle,"  he  added,  in  an  undertone ;  "it  is 
unchanged  these  twenty  years.  Heaven  send 
that  the  beds  are  softer  than  aforetime !" 

They  were  passing  a  clock-mender's  shop. 
The  man  from  Jugendheit  peered  in  the  win 
dow,  which  had  not  been  cleaned  in  an  age,  but 
there  was  no  clock  in  sight  to  give  him  warn 
ing  of  the  time,  and  he  dared  not  now  look  at 
his  watch.  He  had  a  glimpse  of  the  ancient 
clock-mender  himself,  however,  huddled  over  a 
table  upon  which  sputtered  a  candle.  It  touched 
up  his  face  with  grotesque  lights.  Here  was 
age,  mused  the  man  outside  the  window;  noth 
ing  less  than  fourscore  years  rested  upon  those 


'Good  night,  Gretchen.     Good  luck  to  you."     Page  19. 


SOMEINRAGS  19 

rounded  shoulders.  The  face  was  corrugated 
with  wrinkles,  like  a  frosted  road;  eyes  heavily 
spectacled,  a  ragged  thatch  of  hair  on  the  head, 
a  ragged  beard  on  the  chin.  Aware  of  a  shadow 
between  him  and  the  fading  daylight,  the  clock- 
mender  looked  up  from  his  work.  The  eyes  of 
the  two  men  met,  but  only  for  a  moment. 

The  mountaineer,  who  felt  rejuvenated  by 
this  contrast,  straightened  his  shoulders  and 
started  to  cross  the  street  to  the  tavern. 

"Good  night,  Gretchen.  Good  luck  to  you  and 
your  geese  to-morrow." 

"Thanks,  Herr  Ludwig.  And  will  you  be 
long  in  the  city?" 

"That  depends;  perhaps,"  adding  a  grim 
smile  in  answer  to  a  grim  thought. 

He  offered  his  hand,  which  she  accepted 
trustfully.  He  was  a  strange  old  man,  but 
she  liked  him.  When  she  withdrew  her  hand, 
something  cold  and  hard  remained  in  her  palm. 
Wonders  of  all  the  world !  It  was  a  piece  of  gold. 
Her  eyes  went  up  quickly,  but  the  giver  smiled 
reassuringly  and  put  a  finger  against  his  lips. 

"But,  Herr,"  she  remonstrated. 

"Keep  it;  I  give  it  to  you.    Do  not  question 


20  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

providence,  and  I  am  her  handmaiden  just  now. 
Go  along  with  you." 

So  Gretchen  in  a  mild  state  of  stupefaction 
turned  away.  Clat-clat!  sang  the  little  wooden 
shoes.  A  plaintive  gonk  rose  as  she  prodded 
a  laggard  from  the  dank  gutter.  A  piece  of 
gold!  Clat-clat!  Clat-clat!  Surely  this  had  been 
a  day  of  marvels;  two  crowns  from  the  grand 
duke  and  a  piece  of  gold  from  this  old  man  in 
peasant  clothes.  Instinctively  she  knew  that  he 
was  not  a  peasant.  But  what  could  he  be? 
Comparison  would  have  made  him  a  king.  She 
was  too  tired  and  hungry  to  make  further  de 
ductions. 

She  was  regarded  with  kindly  eyes  till  the 
dark  jaws  of  the  Krumerweg  swallowed  up  both 
her  and  her  geese. 

"Poor  little  goose-girl !"  he  thought.  "If  she 
but  knew,  she  could  make  a  bonfire  of  a  thou 
sand  hearts.  A  fine  day !"  He  eyed  again  the 
battered  sign.  It  was  then  that  he  discerned 
another,  leaning  from  the  ledge  of  the  first  story 
of  the  house  adjoining  the  tavern.  It  was  the 
tarnished  shield  of  the  United  States. 

"What  a  penurious  government  it  must  be! 


SOME    IN    RAGS  21 

Two  weeks,  tramping  about  the  country  in  this 
unholy  garb,  following  false  trails  half  the  time, 
living  on  crusts  and  cold  meats.  Ah,  you  have 
led  me  a  merry  dance,  nephew,  but  I  shall  not 
forget !" 

He  entered  the  tavern  and  applied  for  a  room, 
haggling  over  the  price. 


X 


CHAPTER  II 

AN    AMERICAN    CONSUL 

THE  nights  in  Dreiberg  during  September 
are  often  chill.  The  heavy  mists  from 
the  mountain  slip  down  the  granite  clifts  and 
spread  over  the  city,  melting  all  sharp  outlines, 
enfeebling  the  gas-lamps,  and  changing  the 
moon,  if  there  happens  to  be  one,  into  something 
less  than  a  moon  and  something  more  than  a  pew 
ter  disk.  And  so  it  was  this  night. 

Carmichael,  in  order  to  finish  his  cigar  on  the 
little  balcony  fronting  his  window,  found  it  nec 
essary  to  put  on  his  light  overcoat,  though  he 
perfectly  knew  that  he  was  in  no  manner  forced 
to  smoke  on  the  balcony.  But  the  truth  was  he 
wanted  a  clear  vision  of  the  palace  and  the 
lighted  windows  thereof,  and  of  one  in  partic 
ular.  He  had  no  more  sense  than  Tom-fool,  the 
abetter  of  follies.  She  was  as  far  removed  from 
him  as  the  most  alien  of  the  planets ;  but  the 


AN    AMERICAN    CONSUL     23 

magnet  shall  ever  draw  the  needle,  and  a  woman 
shall  ever  draw  a  man.  He  knew  that  it  was 
impossible,  that  it  grew  more  impossible  day  by 
day,  and  he  railed  at  himself  bitterly  and  satir 
ically. 

He  sighed  and  teetered  his  legs.  A  sigh  moves 
nothing  forward,  yet  it  is  as  essential  as  life  it 
self.  It  is  the  safety-valve  to  every  emotion ;  it 
is  the  last  thing  in  laughter,  the  last  thing  in 
tears.  One  sighs  in  entering  the  world  and  in 
leaving  it,  perhaps  in  protest.  A  child  sighs  for 
the  moon  because  it  knows  no  better.  Carmichael 
sighed  for  the  Princess  Hildegarde,  understand 
ing.  It  was  sigh  or  curse,  and  the  latter  mode 
of  expression  wastes  more  vitality.  Oh,  yes ; 
they  made  over  him,  as  the  world  goes ;  they 
dined  and  wined  him  and  elected  him  honorary 
member  to  their  clubs;  they  patted  him  on  the 
back  and  called  him  captain ;  but  it  was  all  in  a 
negligent  toleration  that  turned  every  pleasure 
into  rust. 

Arthur  Carmichael  was  Irish.  He  was  born 
in  America,  educated  there  and  elsewhere,  a  lit 
tle  while  in  Paris,  a  little  while  at  Bonn,  and,  like 
all  Irishmen,  he  was  baned  with  the  wandering 


24  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

foot ;  for  the  man  who  is  homeless  by  choice  has 
a  subtle  poison  in  his  blood.  He  was  at  Bonn 
when  the  Civil  War  came.  He  went  back  to 
America  and  threw  himself  into  the  fight  with  all 
the  ardor  that  had  made  his  forebears  famous 
in  the  service  of  the  worthless  Stuarts.  It  wasn't 
a  question  with  him  of  the  mere  love  of  fighting, 
of  tossing  the  penny ;  he  knew  with  which  side 
he  wished  to  fight.  He  joined  the  cavalry  of 
the  North,  and  hammered  and  fought  his  way 
to  a  captaincy.  He  was  wounded  five  times  and 
imprisoned  twice.  His  right  eye  was  still  weak 
from  the  effects  of  a  powder  explosion;  and 
whenever  it  bothered  him  he  wore  a  single  glass, 
abominating,  as  all  soldiers  do,  the  burden  of 
spectacles.  At  the  end  of  the  conflict  he  returned 
to  Washington. 

And  then  the  inherent  curse  put  a  hand  on  his 
shoulder ;  he  must  be  moving.  His  parents  were 
dead ;  there  was  no  anchor,  nor  had  lying  ambi 
tion  enmeshed  him.  There  was  a  little  property, 
the  income  from  which  was  enough  for  his  wants. 
Without  any  influence  whatever,  save  his  pleas 
ing  address  and  his  wide  education,  he  blarneyed 
the  State  Department  out  of  a  consulate.  They 


AN    AMERICAN    CONSUL    25 

sent  him  to  Ehrenstein,  at  a  salary  not  worth 
mentioning,  with  the  diplomatic  halo  of  dignity 
as  a  tail  to  the  kite.  He  had  been  in  the  service 
some  two  years  by  now,  and  those  who  knew  him 
well  rather  wondered  at  his  sedative  turn  of 
mind.  Two  years  in  any  one  place  was  not  in 
reckoning  as  regarded  Carmichael;  yet,  here  he 
was,  caring  neither  for  promotion  nor  exchange. 
So,  then,  all  logical  deductions  simmered  down  to 
one :  Cherchez  la  femme. 

He  knew  that  his  case  would  never  be  tried  in 
court  nor  settled  out  of  it;  and  he  realized  that 
it  would  be  far  better  to  weigh  anchor  and  set 
his  course  for  other  parts.  But  no  man  ever 
quite  forsakes  his  dream-woman ;  and  he  had  en 
dued  a  princess  with  all  the  shining  attributes  of 
an  angel,  when,  had  he  known  it,  she  was  only 
angelic. 

The  dreamer  is  invariably  tripping  over  his 
illusions;  and  Carmichael  was  rather  boyish  in 
his  dreams.  What  absurd  romances  he  was  al 
ways  weaving  round  her !  What  exploits  on  her 
behalf!  But  never  anything  happened,  and 
never  was  the  grand  duke  called  upon  to  offer 
his  benediction. 


26  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

It  was  all  very  foolish  and  romantic  and  im 
possible,  and  no  one  recognized  this  more  readily 
than  he.  No  American  ever  married  a  princess 
of  a  reigning  house,  and  no  American  ever  will. 
This  law  is  as  immovable  as  the  law  of  gravita 
tion.  Still,  man  is  master  of  his  dreams,  and  he 
may  do  as  he  pleases  in  the  confines  of  this  small 
circle.  Outside  these  temporary  lapses,  Car- 
michael  was  a  keen,  shrewd,  far-sighted  young 
man,  close-lipped  and  observant,  never  forget 
ting  faces,  never  forgetting  benefits,  loving  a 
fight  but  never  provoking  one.  So  he  and  the 
world  were  friends.  Diplomacy  has  its  synonym 
in  tact,  and  he  was  an  able  tactician,  for  all  that 
an  Irishman  is  generally  likened  to  a  bull  in  a 
china-shop. 

"How  the  deuce  will  it  end?" — musing  half 
aloud.  "I'll  forget  myself  some  day  and  trip 
so  hard  that  they'll  be  asking  Washington  for 
my  recall.  I'll  go  over  to  the  gardens  and  listen 
to  the  band.  They  are  playing  dirges  to-night, 
and  anything  funereal  will  be  a  light  and  happy 
tonic  to  my  present  state  of  mind." 

He  was  standing  on  the  curb  in  front  of  the 
hotel,  his  decision  still  unrounded,  when  he  no- 


AN    AMERICAN    CONSUL     27 

ticed  a  closed  carriage  hard  by  the  fountain  in 
the  Platz.  The  driver  dozed  on  his  box. 

"Humph!  There's  a  man  who  is  never  trou 
bled  with  counting  the  fool's  beads.  Silver  and 
copper  are  his  gods  and  goddesses.  Ha!  a 
fare!" 

A  woman  in  black,  thoroughly  veiled  and 
cloaked,  came  round  from  the  opposite  side  of 
the  fountain.  She  spoke  to  the  driver,  and  he 
tumbled  off  the  box,  alive  and  hearty.  There 
seemed  to  be  a  short  interchange  of  words  of 
mutual  satisfaction.  The  lady  stepped  into  the 
carriage,  the  driver  woke  up  his  ancient  Buce 
phalus,  and  went  clickety-clack  down  the  Konig 
Strasse  toward  the  town. 

To  Carmichael  it  was  less  than  an  incident. 
He  twirled  his  cane  and  walked  toward  the  pub 
lic  gardens.  Here  he  strolled  about,  watching 
the  people,  numerous  but  orderly,  with  a  bright 
military  patch  here  and  there.  The  band  struck 
up  again,  and  he  drifted  with  the  crowd  toward 
the  pavilion.  The  penny-chairs  were  occupied, 
so  he  selected  a  spot  off-side,  near  enough  for  all 
auditual  purposes.  One  after  another  he  care 
lessly  scanned  the  faces  of  those  nearest.  He 


28  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

was  something  of  an  amateur  physiognomist, 
but  he  seldom  made  the  mistakes  of  the  tyro. 

Within  a  dozen  feet  of  him,  her  arms  folded 
across  her  breast,  her  eyes  half  shut  in  the 
luxury  of  the  senses,  stood  the  goose-girl.  He 
smiled  as  he  recalled  the  encounter  of  that  after 
noon.  It  was  his  habit  to  ride  to  the  maneuvers 
every  day,  and  several  times  he  had  noticed  her, 
as  well  as  any  rider  is  able  to  notice  a  pedestrian. 
But  that  afternoon  her  beauty  came  home  to  him 
suddenly  and  unexpectedly.  Had  she  been  other 
than  what  she  was,  a  woman  well-gowned,  for  in 
stance,  riding  in  her  carriage,  his  interest  would 
have  waned  in  the  passing.  But  it  had  come 
with  the  same  definite  surprise  as  when  one  finds 
a  rare  and  charming  story  in  a  dilapidated  book. 

"Why  couldn't  I  have  fallen  in  love  with  some 
one  like  this?"  he  cogitated. 

With  a  friendly  smile  on  his  lips,  he  took  a 
step  toward  her,  but  instantly  paused.  Colonel 
von  Wallenstein  of  the  general  staff  approached 
her  from  the  other  side,  and  Carmichael  was  curi 
ous  to  find  out  what  that  officer's  object  was. 
Wallenstein  was  a  capital  soldier,  and  a  jolly 
ifellow  round  a  board,  but  beyond  that  Car- 


AN    AMERICAN    CONSUL     29 

michael  had  no  real  liking  for  him.  There  were 
too  many  scented  notes  stuck  in  his  pockets. 

The  colonel  dropped  his  cigarette,  leaned  over 
Gretchen's  shoulder  and  spoke  a  few  words.  At 
first  she  gave  no  heed.  The  colonel  persisted. 
Without  a  word  in  reply,  she  resolutely  sought 
the  nearest  policeman.  Wallenstein,  remaining 
where  he  was,  laughed.  Meantime  the  policeman 
frowned.  It  was  incredible ;  his  excellency  could 
not  possibly  have  intended  any  wrong,  it  was 
only  a  harmless  pleasantry.  Gretchen's  lips 
quivered;  the  law  of  redress  in  Ehrenstein  had 
no  niche  for  the  goose-girl. 

"Good  evening,  colonel,"  said  Carmichael 
pleasantly.  "Why  can't  your  bandmaster  give 
us  light  opera  once  in  a  while?" 

The  colonel  pulled  his  mustache  in  chagrin, 
but  he  did  not  give  Carmichael  the  credit  for 
bringing  about  this  cheapening  sense.  For  the 
time  being  Gretchen  was  freed  from  annoyance. 
The  colonel  certainly  could  not  rush  off  to  her 
and  give  this  keen-eyed  American  an  oppor 
tunity  to  witness  a  further  rebuff. 

"Light  operas  are  rare  at  present,"  he  re 
plied,  accepting  his  defeat  amiably  enough. 


30  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"Paris  is  full  of  them  just  now,"  continued 
Carmichael. 

"Paris?  Would  you  like  a  riot  in  the  gar 
dens?"  asked  the  colonel,  amused. 

"A  riot?"  said  Carmichael  derisively.  "Why, 
nothing  short  of  a  bombshell  would  cause  a  riot 
among  your  phlegmatic  Germans." 

"I  believe  you  love  your  Paris  better  than 
your  Dreiberg." 

"Not  a  bit  of  doubt.  And  down  in  your  heart 
you  do,  too.  Think  of  the  lights,  the  theaters, 
the  cafes  and  the  pretty  women!"  Carmichael's 
cane  described  a  flourish  as  if  to  draw  a  picture 
of  these  things. 

"Yes,  yes,"  agreed  the  colonel  reminiscently ; 
"you  are  right.  There  is  no  other  night  equal 
to  a  Parisian  night.  Ach,  Gottl  But  think  of 
the  mornings,  think  of  the  mornings!" — dole- 
fully. 

"On  the  contrary,  let  us  not  think  of  them !" — 
with  a  mock  shudder. 

And  then  a  pretty  woman  rose  from  a  chair 
near-by.  She  nodded  brightly  at  the  colonel, 
who  bowed,  excused  himself  to  Carmichael,  and 
made  off  after  her. 


AN    AMERICAN    CONSUL    31 

"I  believe  I  stepped  on  his  toe  that  time,"  said 
Carmichael  to  himself. 

Then  he  looked  round  for  Gretchen.  She  was 
still  at  the  side  of  the  policeman.  She  had 
watched  the  scene  between  the  two  men,  but  was 
quite  unconscious  that  it  had  been  set  for  her 
benefit.  She  came  back.  Carmichael  stepped 
confidently  to  her  side  and  raised  his  hat. 

"Did  you  get  your  geese  together  without 
mishap?"  he  asked. 

The  instinct  of  the  child  always  remains  with 
the  woman.  Gretchen  smiled.  This  young  man 
would  be  different,  she  knew. 

"They  were  only  frightened.  But  his  high 
ness" — eagerly — "was  he  very  angry?" 

"Angry?  Not  the  least.  He  was  amused. 
But  he  was  nearly  knocked  off  his  horse.  If 
you  lived  in  America  now,  you  might  reap  a 
goodly  profit  from  that  goose." 

"America?    How?" 

"You  could  put  him  in  a  museum  and  exhibit 
him  as  an  intimate  friend  of  the  grand  duke  of 
Ehrenstein." 

But  Gretchen  did  not  laugh.  It  was  a  serious 
thing  to  talk  lightly  of  so  grand  a  person  as  the 


32  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

duke.  Still,  the  magic  word  America,  where  the 
gold  came  from,  flamed  her  curiosity. 

"You  are  from  America?" 

"Yes." 

"Are  you  rich?" 

"In  fancy,  in  dreams" — humorously. 

"Oh !    I  thought  they  were  all  rich." 

"Only  one  or  two  of  us." 

"Is  it  very  large,  this  America?" 

"France,  Spain,  Prussia  would  be  lonesome  if 
set  down  in  America.  Only  Russia  has  anything 
to  boast  of." 

"Did  you  fight  in  the  war?" 

"Yes.    Do  you  like  music?" 

"Were  you  ever  wounded?" 

"A  scratch  or  two,  nothing  to  speak  of.  But 
do  you  like  music?" 

"Very,  very  much.  When  they  play  Beetho 
ven,  Bach,  or  Meyerbeer,  ach,  I  seem  to  live  in 
another  country.  I  hear  music  in  everything, 
in  the  leaves,  the  rain,  the  wind,  the  stream." 

It  seemed  strange  to  him  that  he  had  not  no 
ticed  it  at  first,  the  almost  Hanovarian  purity 
of  her  speech  and  the  freedom  with  which  she 
spoke.  The  average  peasant  is  diffident,  with 


a  vocabulary  of  few  words,  ignorant  of  art  or 
music  or  where  the  world  lay. 

"What  is  your  name?" 

"Gretchen." 

"It  is  a  good  name ;  it  is  famous,  too." 

"Goethe  used  it." 

"So  he  did."  Carmichael  ably  concealed  his 
surprise:  "You  have  some  one  who  reads  to 
you?" 

"No,  Herr.  I  can  read  and  write  and  do  sums 
in  addition." 

He  was  willing  to  swear  that  she  was  making 
fun  of  him.  Was  she  a  simple  goose-girl? 
Was  she  not  something  more,  something  deeper  ? 
War-clouds  were  forming  in  the  skies;  they 
might  gather  and  strike  at  any  time.  And  who 
but  the  French  could  produce  such  a  woman 
spy?  Ehrenstein  was  not  Prussia,  it  was  true; 
but  the  duchy  with  its  twenty  thousand  troops 
was  one  of  the  many  pulses  that  beat  in  unison 
with  this  man  Bismarck's  plans.  Carmichael 
addressed  her  quickly  in  French,  aiming  to  catch 
her  off  her  guard. 

"I  do  not  speak  French,  Herr," — honestly. 

He  was  certainly  puzzled,  but  a  glance  at  her 


34  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

hands  dissolved  his  doubts.  These  hands  were 
used  to  toil,  they  were  in  no  way  disguised.  No 
Frenchwoman  would  sacrifice  her  hands  for  her 
country;  at  least,  not  to  this  extent.  Yet  the 
two  things  in  his  mind  would  not  readily  co- 
hese:  a  goose-girl  who  was  familiar  with  the 
poets  and  composers. 

"You  have  been  to  school?" 

"After  a  manner.  My  teacher  was  a  kind 
priest.  But  he  never  knew  that,  with  know 
ledge,  he  was  to  open  the  gates  of  discontent." 

"Then  you  are  not  happy  with  your  lot  ?" 

"Is  any  one,  Herr?" — quietly.  "And  who 
might  you  be,  and  what  might  you  be  doing  here 
in  Dreiberg,  riding  with  the  grand  duke?" 

"I  am  the  American  consul." 

Gretchen  took  a  step  back. 

"Oh,  it  is  nothing  that  will  bite  you,"  he 
added. 

"But  perhaps  I  have  been  disrespectful!" 

"Pray,  how?" 

Gretchen  found  that  she  had  no  definite  ex 
planation  to  offer. 

"What  did  Colonel  Wallenstein  say  to  you?" 

"Nothing  of  importance.    I  am  used  to  it.    I 


AN    AMERICAN    CONSUL    35 

am  perfectly  able  to  take  care  of  myself,"  she 
answered. 

"But  he  annoyed  you." 

"That  is  true,"  she  admitted. 

"What  did  the  policeman  say  ?" 

"What  would  he  say  to  a  goose-girl?" 

"Shall  I  speak  to  him?" 

"Would  it  really  do  any  good?" — skeptically. 

"It  might.  The  duke  is  friendly  toward  me, 
and  I  am  certain  he  would  not  tolerate  such 
conduct  in  his  police." 

"You  would  only  make  enemies  for  me ;  inso 
lence  would  become  persecution.  I  know.  Yet, 
I  thank  you,  Herr " 

"Carmichael.  Now,  listen,  Gretchen ;  if  at  any 
time  you  are  in  trouble,  you  will  find  me  at  the 
Grand  Hotel  or  at  the  consulate  next  door  to  the 
Black  Eagle." 

"I  shall  remember.  Sometimes  I  work  in  the 
Black  Eagle."  And  recollection  rose  in  her  mind 
of  the  old  man  who  had  given  her  the  gold  piece. 

"Good  night,"  he  said. 

"Thank  you,  Herr." 

Gretchen  extended  her  hand  and  Carmichael 
took  it  in  his  own,  inspecting  it. 


36  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"Why  do  you  do  that?" 
"It  is  a  good  hand ;  it  is  strong,  too." 
"It  has  to  be  strong,  Herr.     Good  night." 
Carmichael  raised  his  hat  again,  and  Gretchen 
breathed  contentedly  as  she  saw  him  disappear 
in  the  crowd.     That  little  act  of  courtesy  made 
everything  brighter.    There  was  only  one  other 
who  ever  touched  his  hat  to  her  respectfully. 
And  as  she  stood  there,  dreaming  over  the  un 
usual  happenings  of  the  day,  she  felt  an  arm 
slip  through  hers,  gently  but  firmly,  even  with 
authority.     Her  head  went  round. 
"Leo?"  she  whispered. 

The  young  vintner  whom  Carmichael  had 
pushed  against  the  wall  that  day  smiled  from 
under  the  deep  shade  of  his  hat,  drawn  down 
well  over  his  face. 

"Gretchen,  who  was  that  speaking  to  you?" 
"Herr  Carmichael,  the  American  consul." 
"Carmichael!"     The  arm  in  Gretchen's  stiff 
ened. 

"What  is  it,  Leo?" 

"Nothing.  Only,  I  grow  mad  with  rage  when 
any  of  these  gentlemen  speak  to  you.  Gentle 
men  !  I  know  them  all  too  well." 


AN    AMERICAN    CONSUL     37 

"This  one  means  no  harm." 

"I  would  I  were  certain.  Ah,  how  I  love  you !" 
he  whispered. 

Gretchen  thrilled  and  drew  his  arm  closely 
against  her  side. 

"To  me  the  world  began  but  two  weeks  ago. 
I  have  just  begun  to  live." 

"I  am  glad,"  said  Gretchen.     "But  listen/' 

The  band  was  playing  again. 

"Sometimes  I  am  jealous  even  of  that." 

"I  love  you  none  the  less  for  loving  it." 

"I  know ;  but  I  am  sad  and  lonely  to-night" — 
gloomily.  "I  want  all  your  thoughts." 

"Are  they  not  always  yours  ?  And  why  should 
you  be  sad  and  miserable  ?" 

"Why,  indeed!" 

"Leo,  as  much  as  I  love  you,  there  is  always 
a  shadow." 

"What  shadow?" 

"It  is  always  at  night  that  I  see  you,  rarely 
in  the  bright  daytime.  What  do  you  do  during 
the  day?  It  is  not  yet  vintage.  What  do  you 
do?" 

"Will  you  trust  me  a  little  longer,  Gretchen, 
just  a  little  longer?" 


38  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"Always,  not  a  little  longer,  always.  But  wait 
till  the  music  stops  and  I  will  tell  you  of  my 
adventure." 

"You  have  had  an  adventure?" — distrust 
fully. 

"Yes.    Be  still." 

There  were  tones  in  Gretchen's  voice  that  the 
young  vintner  could  never  quite  understand. 
There  was  a  will  little  less  than  imperial,  and 
often  as  he  rebelled,  he  never  failed  to  bow  to  it. 

"What  was  this  adventure?"  he  demanded,  as 
the  music  stopped. 

She  told  him  about  the  geese,  the  grand  duke, 
and  the  two  crowns.  He  laughed,  and  she  joined 
him,  for  it  was  amusing  now. 

The  musicians  were  putting  away  their  instru 
ments,  the  crowd  was  melting,  the  attendants 
were  stacking  the  chairs,  so  the  two  lovers  went 
out  of  the  gardens  toward  the  town  and  the 
Krumerweg. 

Meanwhile  Carmichael  had  lectured  the  po 
liceman,  who  was  greatly  disturbed. 

"Your  Excellency,  I  am  sure  Colonel  von  Wal- 
lenstein  meant  no  harm." 


AN    AMERICAN    CONSUL    39 

"Are  you  truthfully  sure?" 

The  policeman  plucked  at  his  beard  nervously. 
"It  is  every  man  for  himself,  as  your  excellency 
knows.  Had  I  spoken  to  the  colonel,  he  would 
have  had  me  broken." 

"You  could  have  appealed  to  the  duke." 

"Perhaps.  I  am  sorry  for  the  girl,  but  I  have 
a  family  to  take  care  of." 

"Well,  mark  me ;  this  little  woman  loves  music ; 
she  comes  here  often.  The  next  time  she  is 
annoyed  by  Wallenstein  or  any  one  else,  you 
report  it  to  me.  I'll  see  that  it  reaches  his  high 
ness." 

"I  shall  gladly  do  that,  your  Excellency." 

Carmichael  left  the  gardens  and  wandered 
with  aimless  step.  He  was  surprised  to  find 
that  he  was  opposite  the  side  gates  to  the  royal 
gardens.  His  feet  had  followed  the  bent  of  his 
mind.  Yet  he  did  not  cross  the  narrow  side 
street.  The  sound  of  carriage  wheels  caused 
him  to  halt.  He  waited.  The  carriage  he  had 
seen  by  the  fountain  drew  up  before  the  gates, 
and  the  woman  in  black  alighted.  She  spoke  to 
the  sentinel,  who  opened  the  gates  and  closed 


40  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

them.     The  veiled  lady  vanished  abruptly  be 
yond  the  shrubbery. 

"I  wonder  who  that  was?"  was  Carmichael's 
internal  question.  "Bah!  Some  lady-in-wait 
ing  with  an  affair  on  hand." 


CHAPTER  III 

FOR    HER    COUNTRY 

OUNT,  must  I  tell  you  again  not  to  broach 
that  subject?    There  can  be  no  alliance  be 
tween  Ehrenstein  and  Jugendheit." 

"Why?"  asked  Count  von  Herbeck,  chan 
cellor,  coolly  returning  the  angry  flash  from  the 
ducal  eyes. 

"There  are  a  thousand  reasons  why,  but  it 
is  not  my  purpose  to  name  them." 

"Name  only  one,  your  Highness,  only  one." 

"Will  that  satisfy  you?" 

"Perhaps." 

"One  of  my  reasons  is  that  I  do  not  want  any 
alliance  with  a  country  so  perfidious  as  Jugend 
heit.  What!  I  make  overtures?  I,  who  have 
been  so  cruelly  wronged  all  these  years?  You 
are  mad." 

"But  what  positive  evidence  have  you  that 
Jugendheit  wronged  you?" 
41 


42  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"Positive?  Have  I  eyes  and  ears?  Have  I 
not  seen  and  read  and  heard?"  This  time  the 
duke  struck  the  desk  savagely.  "Why  do  you 
always  rouse  me  in  this  fashion,  Herbeck? 
You  know  how  distasteful  all  this  is  to  me." 

"Your  highness  knows  that  I  look  only  to  the 
welfare  of  the  country.  In  the  old  days  it  was 
a  foregone  conclusion  that  this  alliance  was  to 
be  formed.  Now,  you  persist  in  averring  that 
the  late  king  was  the  chief  conspirator  in  ab 
ducting  her  serene  highness,  aided  by  Arns- 
berg,  whose  successor  I  have  the  honor  to  be. 
I  have  never  yet  seen  any  proofs.  You  have 
never  yet  produced  them.  Show  me  something 
which  absolutely  convicts  them,  and  I'll  surren 
der." 

"On   your  honor?" 

"My  word." 

The  grand  duke  struck  the  bell  on  the  chan 
cellor's  desk. 

"My  secretary,  and  tell  him  to  bring  me  the 
packet  marked  A.  He  will  understand." 

The  two  men  waited  without  speaking,  each 
busy  with  thought.  The  duke  had  been  in 
his  youth,  and  was  still,  a  handsome  man, 


FOR    HER    COUNTRY          43 

splendidly  set  up,  healthy  and  vigorous,  keen 
mentally,  and  whatever  stubbornness  he  pos 
sessed  nicely  balanced  by  common  sense.  He 
might  have  been  guilty  in  his  youth  of  a  few 
human  peccadillos,  but  the  kingly  and  princely 
excesses  which  at  that  time  were  making  the 
east  side  of  the  Rhine  the  scandal  of  the  world 
had  in  no  wise  sullied  his  name.  Ehrenstein 
means  "stone  of  honor,"  and  he  had  always 
carried  the  thought  of  this  in  his  heart.  He 
was  frank  in  his  likes  and  dislikes,  he  hated 
secrets,  and  he  loved  an  opponent  who  engaged 
him  in  the  open.  Herbeck  often  labored  with 
him  over  this  open  manner,  but  the  mind  he 
sought  to  work  upon  was  as  receptive  to  po 
litical  hypocrisy  as  a  wall  of  granite.  It  was 
this  extraordinary  rectitude  which  made  the  duke 
so  powerful  an  aid  to  Bismarck  in  the  days 
that  followed.  The  Man  of  Iron  needed  this  sort 
of  character  as  a  cover  and  a  buckler  to  his 
own  duplicities. 

Herbeck  was  an  excellent  foil.  He  was  as 
silent  and  secretive  as  sand.  He  moved,  as  it 
were,  in  circles,  thus  always  eluding  dangerous 
corners.  He  was  tall,  angular,  with  a  thin,  im- 


44 

mobile  countenance,  well  guarded  by  his  gray 
eyes  and  straight  lips.  He  was  a  born  financier, 
with  almost  limitless  ambition,  though  only  he 
himself  knew  how  far  this  ambition  reached. 
He  had  not  brought  prosperity  to  Ehrenstein, 
but  he  had  fortified  and  bastioned  it  against 
extravagance,  and  this  was  probably  the  larger 
feat  of  the  two.  He  loved  his  country,  and 
brooded  over  it  as  a  mother  broods  over  her 
child.  Twice  had  he  saved  Ehrenstein  from  the 
drag-net  of  war,  and  with  honor.  So  he  was 
admired  by  fathers  and  revered  by  mothers. 

The  secretary  came  in  and  laid  a  thin  packet 
of  papers  on  the  chancellor's  desk.  "It  was 
the  packet  A,  your  Highness?" — his  hand  still 
resting  upon  the  documents. 

"Yes.     You  may  go." 

The  secretary  bowed  and  withdrew. 

The  duke  stirred  the  papers  angrily,  took  one 
of  them  and  spread  it  out  with  a  rasp. 

"Look  at  that.     Whose  writing,  I  ask?" 

Herbeck  adjusted  his  glasses  and  scrutinized 
the  slanting  hieroglyphics.  He  ran  over  it  sev 
eral  times.  At  length  he  opened  a  drawer  in 
his  desk,  sorted  some  papers,  and  brought  out 


FOR    HER    COUNTRY         45 

a  yellow  letter.  This  he  laid  down  beside  the 
other. 

"Yes,  they  are  alike.  This  will  be  Arnsberg. 
But" — mildly — "who  may  say  that  it  is  not  a 
cunning  forgery?" 

"Forgery !"  roared  the  duke.  "Read  this  one 
from  the  late  king  of  Jugendheit  to  Arnsberg, 
then,  if  you  still  doubt." 

Herbeck  read  slowly  and  carefully. 

Then  he  rose  and  walked  to  the  nearest  win 
dow,  studying  the  letter  again  in  the  sharper 
light.  Presently  his  hands  fell  behind  his  back 
and  met  about  the  paper,  while  he  himself  stared 
over  into  the  royal  gardens.  He  remained  in 
this  attitude  for  some  time. 

"Well?"  said  the  duke  impatiently. 

Herbeck  returned  to  his  chair.  "I  wish  that 
you  had  shown  me  these  long  ago." 

"To  what  end?" 

"You  accused  the  king?" 

"Certainly,  but  he  denied  it." 

"In  a  letter?" 

"Yes.     Here,  read  it." 

Herbeck  compared  the  two.  "Where  did  you 
find  these?" 


46  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"In  Arnsberg's  desk,"  returned  the  duke,  the 
anger  in  his  eyes  giving  place  to  gloomy  re 
trospection.  "Arnsberg,  my  boyhood  playmate, 
the  man  I  loved  and  trusted  and  advanced  to  the 
highest  office  in  my  power.  Is  that  not  the  way  ? 
Do  we  ever  trust  any  one  fully  without  being 
in  the  end  deceived?  Well,  dead  or  alive,"  the 
duke  continued,  his  throat  swelling,  "ten  thou 
sand  crowns  to  him  who  brings  Arnsberg  to  me, 
dead  or  alive." 

"He  will  never  come  back,"  said  Herbeck. 

"Not  if  he  is  wise.  He  was  clever.  He  sent 
all  his  fortune  to  Paris,  so  I  found,  and  what 
I  confiscated  was  nothing  but  his  estate.  But 
do  you  believe  me" — putting  a  hand  against  his 
heart — "something  here  tells  me  that  some  day 
fate  will  drag  him  back  and  give  him  into  my 
hands?" 

"You  are  very  bitter." 

"And  have  I  not  cause?  Did  not  my  wife  die 
of  a  broken  heart,  and  did  I  not  become  a  broken 
man?  You  do  not  know  all,  Herbeck,  not  quite 
all.  Franz  also  sought  the  hand  of  the  Princess 
Sofia.  He,  too,  loved  her,  but  I  won.  Well,  his 
revenge  must  have  been  sweet  to  him." 


FOR    HER    COUNTRY         47 

"But  jour  daughter  has  been  restored  to 
her  own." 

"Due  to  your  indefatigable  efforts  alone.  Ah, 
Herbeck,  nothing  will  ever  fill  up  the  gap  be 
tween,  nothing  will  ever  restore  the  mother." 
The  duke  bowed  his  head. 

Herbeck  studied  him  thoughtfully. 

"I  love  my  daughter  and  she  loves  me,  but  I 
don't  know  what  it  is,  I  can't  explain  it,"  ir 
resolutely. 

"What  can  not  your  highness  explain?" 

"Perhaps  the  gap  is  too  wide,  perhaps  the 
separation  has  been  too  long." 

Herbeck  did  not  press  the  duke  to  be  more 
explicit.  He  opened  another  drawer  and  took 
forth  a  long  hood  envelope,  crested  and  sealed. 

"Your  Highness,  here  is  a  letter  from  the 
prince  regent  of  Jugendheit,  formally  asking 
the  hand  of  the  Princess  Hildegarde  for  his 
nephew,  Frederick,  who  will  shortly  be  crowned. 
My  advice  is  to  accept,  to  let  bygones  be  by 
gones." 

"Write  the  prince  that  I  respectfully  decline." 

"Do  nothing  in  haste,  your  Highness.  Tem 
porize;  say  that  you  desire  some  time  to  think 


48  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

about  the  matter.  You  can  change  your  mind 
at  any  time.  A  reply  like  this  commits  you  to 
nothing,  whereas  your  abrupt  refusal  will  only 
widen  the  breach." 

"The  wider  the  breach  the  better." 

"No,  no,  your  Highness;  the  past  has  dis 
turbed  you.  We  can  stand  war,  and  it  is 
possible  that  we  might  win,  even  against  Jugend- 
heit;  but  war  at  this  late  day  would  be  a  colos 
sal  blunder.  Victory  would  leave  us  where  we 
began  thirty  years  ago.  One  does  not  go  to 
war  for  a  cause  that  has  been  practically  dead 
these  sixteen  years.  And  an  insult  to  Jugend- 
heit  might  precipitate  war.  It  would  be  far 
wiser  to  let  me  answer  the  prince  regent,  saying 
that  your  highness  will  give  the  proposal  your 
thoughtful  consideration." 

"Have  your  way,  then,  but  on  your  head  be 
it  if  you  commit  me  to  anything." 

The  duke  was  about  to  gather  up  his  docu 
mentary  evidence,  when  Herbeck  touched  his 
hand. 

"I  have  an  idea,"  said  the  chancellor.  "A 
great  many  letters  reach  me  from  day  to  day. 
I  have  an  excellent  memory.  Who  knows  but 


FOR    HER    COUNTRY         49 

that  I  might  find  the  true  conspirator,  the  arch- 
plotter  ?  Leave  them  with  me,  your  Highness." 

"I  shall  not  ask  you  to  be  careful  with  them, 
Herbeck." 

"I  shall  treasure  them  as  my  life." 

The  duke  departed,  stirred  as  he  had  not  been 
since  the  restoration  of  the  princess.  Herbeck 
sometimes  irritated  him,  for  he  was  never  in  the 
wrong,  he  was  never  impatient,  he  was  never 
hasty,  he  never  had  to  go  over  a  thing  twice. 
This  supernal  insight,  which  overlooked  all 
things  but  results,  set  the  duke  wondering  if 
Herbeck  was  truly  all  human.  If  only  he  could 
catch  him  at  fault  once  in  a  while! 

Count  von  Herbeck  remained  at  his  desk,  his 
face  as  inscrutable  as  ever,  his  eyes  without  ex 
pression,  and  his  lips  expressing  nothing.  He 
smoothed  out  a  sheet  of  paper,  affixed  the  state 
seal,  and  in  a  flowing  hand  wrote  a  diplomatic 
note,  considering  the  proposal  of  his  royal  high 
ness,  the  prince  regent  of  Jugendheit,  on  behalf 
of  his  nephew,  the  king.  This  he  placed  in  the 
diplomatic  pouch,  called  for  a  courier,  and  des 
patched  him  at  once  for  the  frontier. 

The  duke  sought  his  daughter.     She  was  in 


50  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

the  music-room,  surrounded  by  several  of  her 
young  women  companions,  each  holding  some 
musical  instrument  in  her  hands.  Hildegarde 
was  singing.  The  duke  paused,  shutting  his 
eyes  and  striving  to  recall  the  voice  of  the 
mother.  When  the  voice  died  away  and  the 
young  women  leaned  back  in  their  chairs  to 
rest,  the  duke  approached.  Upon  seeing  him 
all  rose.  With  a  smile  he  dismissed  them. 

"My  child,"  he  began,  taking  Hildegarde's 
hand  and  drawing  her  toward  a  window-seat, 
"the  king  of  Jugendheit  asks  for  your  hand." 

"Mine,  father?" 

"Even  so." 

"Then  I  am  to  marry  the  king  of  Jugend 
heit?"  There  was  little  joy  in  her  voice. 

"Ah,  we  have  not  gone  so  far  as  that.  The 
king,  through  his  uncle,  has  simply  made  a 
proposal.  How  would  you  regard  it,  knowing 
what  you  do  of  the  past,  the  years  that  you 
lived  in  comparative  penury,  amid  hardships, 
unknown,  and  almost  without  name?" 

"It  is  for  you  to  decide,  father.  Whatever 
your  decision  is,  I  shall  abide  by  it." 

"It  is  a  hard  lesson  we  have  to  learn,  my  child. 


FOR    HER    COUNTRY         51 

We  can  not  always  marry  where  we  love ;  diplo 
macy  and  politics  make  other  plans.  But  for 
tunately  for  you  you  love  no  one  yet."  He  put 
his  hand  under  her  chin  and  searched  the  deeps 
of  her  gray  eyes.  These  eyes  were  more  like 
her  mother's  than  anything  else  about  her.  "The 
king  is  young,  handsome,  they  say,  and  rich. 
Politically  speaking,  it  would  be  a  great  match." 

"I  am  in  your  hands.  You  know  what  is 
best." 

The  duke  was  poignantly  disappointed.  Why 
did  she  not  refuse  outright,  indignantly,  con 
temptuously,  as  became  one  of  the  House  of  Ehr- 
enstein?  Anything  rather  than  this  compla 
cency. 

"What  is  he  like?"  disengaging  his  hand  and 
turning  her  face  toward  the  window. 

"That  no  one  seems  to  know.  He  has  been 
to  his  capital  but  twice  in  ten  years,  which 
doubtless  pleased  his  uncle,  who  loves  power  for 
its  own  sake.  The  young  king  has  been  in  Paris 
most  of  the  time.  That's  the  way  they  educate 
kings  these  days.  They  teach  them  all  the  vices 
and  make  virtue  an  accident.  Your  father  loves 
you,  and  if  you  are  inclined  toward  his  majesty, 


52  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

if  it  is  in  jour  heart  to  become  a  queen,  I  shall 
not  let  my  prejudices  stand  in  the  way." 

She  caught  up  his  hand  with  a  strange  pas 
sion  and  kissed  it. 

"Father,  I  do  not  want  to  marry  any  one," 
wistfully.  "But  a  queen!"  she  added  thought- 
fully. 

"It  is  only  a  sound,  my  dear;  do  not  let  it 
delude  you.  Herbeck  advises  this  alliance,  and 
while  I  realize  that  his  judgment  is  right,  my 
whole  soul  revolts  against  it.  But  all  depends 
upon  you." 

"Would  it  benefit  the  people?  Would  it  be 
for  the  good  of  the  state?" 

Here  was  reason.  "Yes;  my  objections  are 
merely  personal,"  said  the  duke. 

"For  the  good  of  my  country,  which  I  love, 
I  am  ready  to  make  any  sacrifice.  I  shall  think 
it  over." 

"Very  well;  but  weigh  the  matter  carefully. 
There  is  never  any  retracing  a  step  of  this  kind." 
He  stood  up,  his  heart  heavy.  Saying  no  more, 
he  moved  toward  the  door. 

She  gazed  after  him,  and  suddenly  and  silently 
she  stretched  out  her  arms,  her  eyes  and  face 


FOR    HER    COUNTRY          53 

and  lips  yearning  with  love.  Curiously  enough, 
the  duke  happened  to  turn.  He  was  at  her  side 
in  a  moment,  holding  her  firm  in  his  embrace. 

"You  are  all  I  have,  girl !"  with  a  bit  of  break 
in  his  voice. 

"My  father !"     She  stroked  his  cheek. 

When  he  left  the  room  it  was  with  lighter 
step. 

The  restoration  of  the  Princess  Hildegarde 
of  Ehrenstein  had  been  the  sensation  of  Europe, 
as  had  been  in  the  earlier  days  her  remarkable 
abduction.  For  sixteen  years  the  search  had 
gone  on  fruitlessly.  The  cleverest  adventur 
esses  on  the  continent  tried  devious  tricks  to 
palm  themselves  off  as  the  lost  princess.  From 
France  they  had  come,  from  Prussia,  Italy, 
Austria,  Russia  and  England.  But  the  duke 
and  the  chancellor  held  the  secret,  unknown  to 
any  one  else — a  locket.  In  a  garret  in  Dres 
den  the  agents  of  Herbeck  found  her,  a  singer 
in  the  chorus  of  the  opera.  The  newspapers 
and  illustrated  weeklies  raged  about  her  for  a 
while,  elaborated  the  story  of  her  struggles,  the 
mysterious  remittances  which  had,  from  time  to 
time,  saved  her  from  direst  poverty,  her  ambi- 


54  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

tion,  her  education  which,  by  dint  of  hard  work, 
she  had  acquired.  It  was  all  very  puzzling  and 
interesting  and  romantic.  For  what  purpose 
had  she  been  stolen,  and  by  whom?  The  duke 
accused  Franz  of  Jugendheit,  but  he  did  so 
privately.  Search  as  they  would,  the  duke  and 
the  chancellor  never  traced  the  source  of  the  re 
mittances.  The  duke  held  stubbornly  that  the 
sender  of  these  benefactions  was  moved  by  the 
impulse  of  a  guilty  conscience,  and  that  this 
guilty  conscience  was  in  Jugendheit.  But  these 
remittances,  argued  Herbeck,  came  long  after 
the  death  of  the  old  king.  He  had  his  agents, 
vowed  the  duke.  Herbeck  would  not  listen  to 
this.  He  preferred  to  believe  that  Count  von 
Arnsberg  was  the  man. 

There  was  an  endless  tangle  of  red  tape  be 
fore  the  girl  became  secure  in  her  rights.  But 
finally,  when  William  of  Prussia  and  Franz 
Josef  of  Austria  congratulated  the  duke,  every 
body  else  fell  into  line,  and  every  troop  in  the 
duchy  came  to  Dreiberg  to  the  celebration.  Then 
the  world  ran  away  in  pursuit  of  other  adven 
tures,  and  forgot  all  about  her  serene  highness. 

And  was  she  happy  with  all  this  grandeur, 


FOR    HER    COUNTRY          55 

with  all  these  lackeys  and  attentions  and  en 
virons?  Who  can  say?  Sometimes  she  longed 
for  the  freedom  and  lack-care  of  her  Dresden 
garret,  her  musician  friends,  the  studios,  the 
crash  and  glitter  of  the  opera.  To  be  sud 
denly  deprived  of  the  fruits  of  ambition,  to  reach 
such  a  pinnacle  without  striving,  to  be  no  longer 
independent,  somehow  it  was  all  tasteless  with  the 
going  of  the  novelty. 

She  looked  like  a  princess,  she  moved  and 
acted  like  one,  but  after  the  manner  of  kindly 
fairy  princesses  in  story-books.  All  fell  in  love 
with  her,  from  the  groom  who  saddled  her  horse, 
to  the  chancellor,  who  up  to  this  time  was  known 
never  to  have  loved  anything  but  the  state. 

She  was  lovely  enough  to  inspire  fervor  and 
homage  and  love  in  all  masculine  minds.  She 
was  witty  and  talented.  Carmichael  said  she 
was  one  of  the  most  beautiful  women  in  Europe. 
Later  he  modified  this  statement  by  declaring 
that  she  was  the  most  beautiful  woman  in  Europe 
or  elsewhere.  Yet,  often  she  went  about  as  one 
in  a  waking  dream.  There  was  an  aloofness 
which  was  not  born  of  hauteur  but  rather  of  a 
lingering  doubt  of  herself. 


56  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

She  was  still  in  the  window-seat  when  the 
chancellor  was  announced.  She  distrusted  him 
a  little,  she  knew  not  why;  yet,  when  he  bent 
over  her  hand  she  was  certain  that  his  whole 
heart  was  behind  his  salute. 

"Your  Highness,"  he  said,  "I  am  come  to  an 
nounce  to  you  that  there  waits  for  you  a  high 
place  in  the  affairs  of  the  world." 

"The  second  crown  in  Jugendheit?" 

"Your  father ?" 

"Yes.  He  leaves  the  matter  wholly  in  my 
hands." 

The  sparkle  in  his  eyes  was  the  first  evidence 
of  emotion  she  had  ever  seen  in  him.  It  rather 
pleased  her. 

"It  is  for  the  good  of  the  state.  A  princess 
like  yourself  must  never  wed  an  inferior." 

"Would  a  man  who  was  brave  and  kind  and 
resourceful,  but  without  a  title,  would  he  be  an 
inferior?" 

"Assuredly,  politically.  And  I  regret  to  say 
that  your  marriage  could  never  be  else  than  a 
matter  of  politics." 

"I  am,  then,  for  all  that  I  am  a  princess, 
simply  a  certificate  of  exchange?" 


His  keen  ear  caught  the  bitter  undercurrent. 
"The  king  of  Jugendheit  is  young.  I  do  not 
see  how  he  can  help  loving  you  the  moment  he 
knows  you.  Who  can?"  And  the  chancellor 
enjoyed  the  luxury  of  a  smile. 

"But  he  may  not  be  heart  whole." 

"He  will  be,  politically." 

"Politics,  politics;  how  I  hate  the  word! 
Sometimes  I  regret  my  garret." 

The  chancellor  frowned.  "Your  Highness,  I 
beg  of  you  never  to  give  that  thought  utterance 
in  the  presence  of  your  father." 

"Ah,  believe  me,  I  am  not  ungrateful;  but 
all  this  is  new  to  me,  even  yet.  I  am  living  in 
a  dream,  wondering  and  wondering  when  I  shall 
wake." 

The  chancellor  wrinkled  his  lips.  It  was  more 
of  a  grimace  than  a  smile. 

"Will  you  consent  to  this  marriage?" 

"Would  it  do  any  good  to  reject  it?" 

"On  the  contrary,  it  would  do  Ehrenstein 
great  harm." 

"Give  me  a  week,"  wearily. 

"A  week!"  There  was  joy  on  the  chancel 
lor's  face  now,  unmasked,  unconcealed.  "Oh, 


58  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

when  the  moment  comes  that  I  see  the  crown  of 
Jugendheit  on  your  beautiful  head,  all  my  work 
shall  not  have  been  in  vain.  So  then,  within 
seven  days  I  shall  come  for  your  answer?" 

"One  way  or  the  other,  my  answer  will  be 
ready  then." 

"There  is  one  thing  more,  your  Highness." 

"And  that?" 

"There  must  not  be  so  many  rides  in  the  morn 
ing  with  his  excellency,  Herr  Carmichael." 

She  met  his  piercing  glance  with  that  mild 
duplicity  known  only  to  women.  "He  is  a  gen 
tleman,  he  amuses  me,  and  there  is  no  harm. 
Grooms  are  always  with  us.  And  often  he  is  only 
one  of  a  party." 

"It  is  politics  again,  your  Highness ;  I  merely 
offer  the  suggestion." 

"Marry  me  to  the  king  of  Jugendheit,  if  you 
will,  but  in  this  I  shall  have  my  way."  But  she 
laughed  as  she  laid  down  this  law. 

He  surrendered  his  doubt.  "Well,  for  a  week. 
But  once  the  banns  are  published,  it  will  be  nei 
ther  wise  nor " 

"Proper?  That  is  a  word,  Count,  that  I  do 
not  like." 


FOR    HER    COUNTRY          59 

"Pardon  me,  your  Highness.  All  this  talk  is 
merely  for  the  sake  of  saving  you  needless  em 
barrassment." 

He  bowed  and  took  his  leave  of  her. 

"  Jegundheit !  Ah,  I  had  rather  my  garret,  my 
garret !" 

And  her  gaze  sped  across  the  Platz  and  ling 
ered  about  one  of  the  little  window-balconies  of 
the  Grand  Hotel. 


CHAPTER    IV 

THE    YOUNG    VINTNER 

THE  Black  Eagle  (Zum  Schwartsen  Adler) 
in  the  Adlergasse  was  a  prosperous  tavern 
of  the  second  rate.    The  house  was  two  hundred 
years  old  and  had  been  in  the  Bauer  family  all 
that  time. 

Had  Frau  Bauer,  or  Frau-Wirtin,  as  she 
was  familiarly  called,  been  masculine,  she  would 
have  been  lightly  dubbed  Bauer  VII.  She  was  a 
widow,  and  therefore  uncrowned.  She  had  been 
a  widow  for  many  a  day,  for  the  novelty  of  being 
her  own  manager  had  not  yet  worn  off.  She  was 
thirty-eight,  plump,  pretty  in  a  free-hand  man 
ner,  and  wise.  It  was  useless  to  loll  about  the 
English  bar  where  she  kept  the  cash-drawer ;  it 
was  useless  to  whisper  sweet  nothings  into  her 
ear ;  it  was  more  than  useless,  it  was  foolish. 

"Go  along  with  you,  Herr ;  I  wouldn't  marry 
the  best  man  living.     I  can  add  the  accounts,  I 
can  manage.    Why  should  I  marry  ?" 
60 


THE    YOUNG   VINTNER      61 

"But  marriage  is  the  natural  state !" 

"Herr,  I  crossed  the  frontier  long  ago,  but 
having  recrossed  it,  never  again  shall  I  go  back. 
One  crown-forty,  if  you  please.  Thank  you." 

This  retort  had  become  almost  a  habit  with 
the  Frau-Wirtin ;  and  when  a  day  went  by  with 
out  a  proposal,  she  went  to  bed  with  the  sense 
that  the  day  had  not  been  wholly  successful. 

To-night  the  main  room  of  the  tavern  swam  in 
a  blue  haze  of  smoke,  which  rose  to  the  blackened 
rafters,  hung  with  many  and  various  sausages, 
cheeses,  and  dried  vegetables.  Dishes  clat 
tered,  there  was  a  buzzing  of  voices,  a  scraping 
of  feet  and  chairs,  a  banging  of  tankards,  alto 
gether  noisy  and  cheerful.  The  Frau-Wirtin  pre 
ferred  waitresses,  and  this  preference  was  shared 
by  her  patrons.  They  were  quicker,  cleaner; 
they  remembered  an  order  better ;  they  were  not 
always  surreptitiously  emptying  the  dregs  of 
tankards  on  the  way  to  the  bar,  as  men  invaria 
bly  did.  Besides,  the  barmaid  was  an  English  in 
stitution,  and  the  Frau-Wirtin  greatly  admired 
that  race,  though  no  one  knew  why.  The  girls 
were  fully  able  to  defend  themselves,  and  were 
not  at  all  diffident  in  boxing  a  smart  fellow's  ears. 


62  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

They  had  a  rough  wit  and  could  give  and  take. 
If  a  man  thought  this  an  invitation  and  tried  to 
take  a  kiss,  he  generally  had  his  face  slapped  for 
his  pains,  and  the  Frau-Wirtin  was  always  on 
the  side  of  her  girls. 

The  smoke  was  so  thick  one  could  scarcely  see 
two  tables  away,  and  if  any  foreigner  chanced  to 
open  a  window  there  was  a  hubbub ;  windows  were 
made  for  light,  not  air.  There  were  soldiers,  non 
commissioned  officers — for  the  fall  maneuvers 
brought  many  to  Dreiberg — farmers  and  their 
families,  and  the  men  of  the  locality  who  made 
the  Black  Eagle  a  kind  of  socialist  club.  Social 
ism  was  just  taking  hold  in  those  days,  and  the 
men  were  tremendously  serious  and  secretive  re 
garding  it,  as  it  wasn't  strong  enough  to  be  pop 
ular  with  governments  which  ruled  by  hereditary 
might  and  right. 

Gretchen  came  in,  a  little  better  dressed  than 
in  the  daytime,  the  change  consisting  of  coarse 
stockings  and  shoes  of  leather,  of  which  she  was 
correspondingly  proud. 

"Will  you  want  me,  Frau-Wirtin,  for  a  little 
while  to-night?"  she  asked. 

"Till  nine.  Half  a  crown  as  usual." 


THE    YOUNG   VINTNER     63 

Gretchen  sought  the  kitchen  and  found  an 
apron  and  cap.  These  half-crowns  were  fine 
things  to  pick  up  occasionally,  for  it  was  only 
upon  occasions  that  she  worked  at  the  Black 
Eagle. 

In  an  obscure  corner  sat  the  young  vintner. 
He  had  finished  his  supper  and  was  watching 
and  scrutinizing  all  who  came  in.  His  face 
brightened  as  he  saw  the  goose-girl;  he  would 
have  known  that  head  anywhere,  whether  he  saw 
the  face  or  not.  He  wanted  to  go  to  her  at  once, 
but  knew  this  action  would  not  be  wise. 

In  the  very  corner  itself,  his  back  to  the  vint 
ner's,  and  nothing  but  the  wall  to  look  at,  was  the 
old  man  in  tatters  and  patches,  the  mountaineer 
who  possessed  a  Swiss  watch  and  gave  golden 
coins  to  goose-girls.  He  was  busily  engaged  in 
gnawing  the  leg  of  a  chicken.  Between  times  he 
sipped  his  beer,  listening. 

Carmichael  had  forgotten  some  papers  that 
day.  He  had  dined  early  at  the  hotel  and  re 
turned  at  once  to  the  consulate.  He  was  often  a 
visitor  at  the  Black  Eagle.  The  beer  was  sweet 
and  cool.  So,  having  pocketed  his  papers,  he 
was  of  a  mind  to  carry  on  a  bit  of  badinage  with 


64  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

Frau  Bauer.  As  he  stepped  into  the  big  hall, 
in  his  evening  clothes,  he  was  as  conspicuous  as  a 
passing  ship  at  sea. 

"Good  evening,  Frau-Wirtin." 

"Good  evening,  your  Excellency."  She  was 
quite  fluttered  when  this  fine  young  man  spoke  to 
her.  He  was  the  only  person  who  ever  caused  her 
embarrassment,  even  though  temporary.  There 
was  always  a  whimsical  smile  on  his  lips  and  in 
his  eyes,  and  Frau  Bauer  never  knew  exactly 
how  to  take  him.  "What  is  on  your  mind?" 
brightly. 

"Many  things.  You  haven't  aged  the  least 
since  last  I  saw  you." 

"Which  was  day  before  yesterday !" 

"Not  any  further  back  than  that  ?" 

"Not  an  hour." 

She  turned  to  make  change,  while  Carmichael's 
eyes  roved  in  search  of  a  vacant  chair.  He  saw 
but  one. 

"The  goose-girl  ?"  he  murmured  suddenly.  "Is 
Gretchen  one  of  your  waitresses  ?" 

"She  comes  in  once  in  a  while.  She's  a  good 
girl  and  I'm  glad  to  help  her,"  Frau  Bauer  re 
plied. 


THE    YOUNG    VINTNER      65 

"I  do  not  recollect  having  seen  her  here  be 
fore." 

"That  is  because  you  rarely  come  at  night." 

"Ah!" 

Gretchen  carried  a  tray  upon  which  steamed 
a  vegetable  stew.  She  saw  Carmichael  and  nod 
ded. 

"I  shall  be  at  yonder  table,"  he  said  indica 
ting  the  vacant  chair.  "Will  you  bring  me  a 
tankard  of  brown  Ehrenstanier  ?" 

"At  once,  Herr." 

Carmichael  made  his  way  to  the  table.  Across 
the  room  he  had  not  recognized  the  vintner,  but 
now  he  remembered.  He  had  crowded  him  against 
a  wall  two  or  three  days  before. 

"This  seat  is  not  reserved,  Herr?"  he  asked 
pleasantly,  with  his  hand  on  the  back  of  the 
chair. 

"No."  There  was  no  cordiality  in  the  answer. 
The  vintner  turned  back  the  lid  of  his  stein  and 
drank  slowly. 

Carmichael  sat  down  sidewise,  viewing  the 
scene  with  never-waning  interest.  These  Ger 
man  taverns  were  the  delight  of  his  soul.  Every 
body  was  so  kindly  and  orderly  and  hungry. 


66  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

They  ate  and  drank  like  persons  whose  con 
sciences  were  not  overburdened.  From  the  corner 
of  his  eye  he  observed  that  the  vintner  was  study 
ing  him.  Now  this  vintner's  face  was  something 
familiar.  Carmichael  stirred  his  memory.  It 
was  not  in  Dreiberg  that  he  had  seen  him  before. 
But  where? 

Gretchen  arrived  with  the  tankard  which  she 
sat  down  at  Carmichael's  elbow. 

"Will  you  not  join  me,  Herr?"  he  invited. 

"Thank  you,"  said  the  vintner,  without  hesita 
tion. 

He  smiled  at  Gretchen  and  she  smiled  at  him. 
Carmichael  smiled  at  them  both  tolerantly. 

"What  will  you  be  drinking?" 

"Brown,"  said  the  vintner. 

Gretchen  took  up  the  empty  tankard  and 
made  off.  The  eyes  of  the  two  men  followed  her 
till  she  reached  the  dim  bar,  then  their  glances 
swung  round  and  met.  Carmichael  was  first  to 
speak,  not  because  he  was  forced  to,  but  because 
it  was  his  fancy  at  that  moment  to  give  the 
vintner  the  best  of  it. 

"She  is  a  fine  girl." 

"Yes,"  tentatively. 


THE   YOUNG   VINTNER     67 

"She  is  the  handsomest  peasant  I  ever  saw  or 
knew." 

"You  know  her?"  There  was  a  spark  in  the 
vintner's  eyes. 

"Only  for  a  few  days.  She  interests  me." 
Carmichael  produced  a  pipe  and  lighted  it. 

"Ah,  yes,  the  pretty  peasant  girl  always  in 
terests  you  gentlemen."  There  was  a  note  of  bit- 
nerness.  "Did  you  come  here  to  seek  her?" 

"This  is  the  first  time  I  ever  saw  her  here.  And 
let  me  add,"  evenly,  "that  my  interest  in  her  is 
not  of  the  order  you  would  infer.  She  is  good 
and  patient  and  brave,  and  my  interest  in  her  is 
impersonal.  It  is  not  necessary  for  me  to  make 
any  explanations,  but  I  do  so." 

"Pardon  me!"  The  vintner  was  plainly 
abashed. 

"Granted.  But  you,  you  seem  to  possess  a  pe 
culiar  interest." 

The  vintner  flushed.  "I  have  that  right,"  with 
an  air  which  rather  mystified  Carmichael. 

"That  explains  everything.  I  do  not  recollect 
seeing  you  before  in  the  Black  Eagle." 

"I  am  from  the  north;  a  vintner,  and  there 


68  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

is  plenty  of  work  here  in  the  valleys  late  in  Sep 
tember." 

"The  grape,"  mused  Carmichael.  ''You  will 
never  learn  how  to  press  it  as  they  do  in  France. 
It  is  wine  there;  it  is  vinegar  this  side  of  the 
Rhine." 

"France,"  said  the  vintner  moodily.  "Do  you 
think  there  will  be  any  France  in  the  future?" 

Carmichael  laughed.  "France  is  an  incurable 
cosmic  malady;  it  will  always  be.  It  may  be 
beaten,  devastated,  throttled,  but  it  will  not  die." 

"You  are  fond  of  France?" 

"Very." 

"Do  you  think  it  wise  to  say  so  here  ?" 

"I  am  the  American  consul ;  nobody  minds  my 
opinions." 

"The  American  consul,"  repeated  the  vintner. 

Gretchen  could  now  be  seen,  wending  her  re 
turn  in  and  out  among  the  clustering  tables.  She 
set  the  tankards  down,  and  Carmichael  put  out 
a  silver  crown. 

"And  do  not  bother  about  the  change." 

"Are  all  Americans  rich?"  she  asked  soberly. 
"Do  you  never  keep  the  change  yourselves  ?" 

"Not  when  we  are  in  our  Sunday  clothes." 


"Are  all  Americans  rich?"  she  asked,  soberly.     Page  68. 


THE    YOUNG   VINTNER     69 

"Then  it  is  vanity."  Gretchen  shook  her  head 
wisely. 

"Mine  is  worth  only  four  coppers  to-night," 
he  said. 

The  vintner  laughed  pleasantly.  Gretchen 
looked  into  his  eyes,  and  an  echo  found  haven  in 
her  own. 

Carmichael  thirstily  drank  his  first  tankard, 
thinking:  "So  this  vintner  is  in  love  with  our 
goose-girl?  Confound  my  memory!  It  never 
failed  me  like  this  before.  I  would  give  twenty 
crowns  to  know  where  I  have  seen  him.  It's  only 
the  time  and  place  that  bothers  me,  not  the  face. 
A  fine  beer,"  he  said  aloud,  holding  up  the  sec 
ond  tankard. 

The  vintner  raised  his ;  there  was  an  uncon 
scious  grace  in  the  movement.  A  covert  glance 
at  his  hand  satisfied  Carmichael  in  regard  to  one 
thing.  He  might  be  a  vintner,  but  the  hand  was 
as  soft  and  well-kept  as  a  woman's,  for  all  that 
it  was  stained  by  wind  and  sunshine.  A  handsome 
beggar,  whoever  and  whatever  he  was.  But  a 
second  thought  disturbed  him.  Could  a  man  with 
hands  like  these  mean  well  toward  Gretchen?  He 
was  a  thorough  man  of  the  world ;  he  knew  inno- 


70  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

cence  at  first  glance,  and  Gretchen  was  both  in 
nocent  and  unworldly.  To  the  right  man  she 
might  be  easy  prey.  Never  to  a  man  like  Colonel 
von  Wallenstein,  whose  power  and  high  office 
were  alike  sinister  to  any  girl  of  the  peasantry ; 
but  a  man  in  the  guise  of  her  own  class,  of  her 
own  world  and  people,  here  was  a  snare  Gretchen 
might  not  be  able  to  foresee.  He  would  watch 
this  fellow,  and  at  the  first  sign  of  an  evil — Car- 
michael's  muscular  brown  hands  opened  and  shut 
ominously.  The  vintner  did  not  observe  this  pe 
culiar  expression  of  the  hands ;  and  Carmichael's 
face  was  bland. 

A  tankard,  rapping  a  table  near-by,  called 
Gretchen  to  her  duties.  There  was  something  re 
luctant  in  her  step,  in  the  good-by  glance,  in 
the  sudden  fall  of  the  smiling  lips. 

"She  will  make  some  man  a  good  wife,"  said 
Carmichael. 

The  vintner  scowled  at  his  tankard. 

"He  is  not  sure  of  her,"  thought  Carmichael. 
Aloud  he  said :  "What  a  funny  world  it  is  !" 

"How?" 

"Gretchen  is  beautiful  enough  to  be  a  queen, 
and  yet  she  is  merely  a  Hebe  in  a  tavern." 


THE    YOUNG   VINTNER      71 

"Hebe?"  suspiciously.  The  peasant  is  always 
suspicious  of  anything  he  doesn't  understand. 

"Hebe  was  a  cup-bearer  to  the  mythological 
gods  in  olden  times,"  Carmichael  explained.  He 
had  set  a  trap,  but  the  vintner  had  not  fallen 
into  it. 

"A  fairy-story."  The  vintner  nodded ;  he  un 
derstood  now. 

Carmichael's  glance  once  more  rested  on  the 
vintner's  hand.  He  would  lay  another  trap. 

"What  happened  to  her  ?" 

"Oh,"  said  Carmichael,  "she  spilled  wine  on  a 
god  one  day,  and  they  banished  her." 

"It  must  have  been  a  rare  vintage." 

"I  suppose  you  are  familiar  with  all  valleys. 
Moselle?" 

"Yes.  That  is  a  fine  country." 

The  old  man  in  tatters  sat  erect  in  his  chair, 
but  he  did  not  turn  his  head. 

"You  have  served  ?" 

"A  little.  If  I  could  be  an  officer  I  should  like 
the  army."  The  vintner  reached  for  his  pipe 
which  lay  on  the  table. 

"Try  this,"  urged  Carmichael,  offering  his 
pouch. 


72  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"This  will  be  good  tobacco,  I  know."  The 
vintner  filled  his  pipe. 

Carmichael  followed  this  gift  with  many  ques 
tions  about  wines  and  vintages;  and  hidden  in 
these  questions  were  a  dozen  clever  traps.  But 
the  other  walked  over  them,  unhesitant,  with  a 
certainty  of  step  which  chagrined  the  trapper. 

By  and  by  the  vintner  rose  and  bade  his  table- 
companion  a  good  night.  He  had  not  offered  to 
buy  anything,  another  sign  puzzling  to  Car- 
michael.  This  frugality  was  purely  of  the  thrifty 
peasant.  But  the  vintner  was  not  ungrateful, 
and  he  expressed  many  thanks.  On  his  way  to 
the  door  he  stopped,  whispered  into  Gretchen's 
ear,  and  passed  out  into  the  black  street. 

"Either  he  is  a  fine  actor,  or  he  is  really  what 
he  says  he  is."  Carmichael  was  dissatisfied.  "I'll 
stake  my  chances  on  being  president  of  the 
United  States,  which  is  safe  enough  as  a  wager, 
that  this  fellow  is  not  genuine.  I'll  watch  him. 
I've  stumbled  upon  a  pretty  romance  of  some 
sort,  but  I  fear  that  it  is  one-sided."  He  wrinkled 
his  forehead,  but  that  part  of  his  recollection  he 
aimed  to  stir  remained  fallow,  in  darkness. 

The  press  in  the  room  was  thinning.    There 


were  vacant  chairs  here  and  there  now.  A  carter 
sauntered  past  and  sat  down  unconcernedly  at 
the  table  occupied  by  the  old  man  whose  face 
Carmichael  had  not  yet  seen.  The  two  exchanged 
not  even  so  much  as  a  casual  nod.  A  little  later 
a  butcher  approached  the  same  table  and  seated 
himself  after  the  manner  of  the  carter.  It  was 
only  when  the  dusty  baker  came  along  and  re 
peated  this  procedure,  preserving  the  same  si 
lence,  that  Carmichael's  curiosity  was  enlivened. 
This  curiosity,  however,  was  only  of  the  evanes 
cent  order.  Undoubtedly  they  were  socialists 
and  this  was  a  little  conclave,  and  the  peculiar 
manner  of  their  meeting,  the  silence  and  mys 
tery,  were  purely  fictional.  Socialism  at  that 
time  revolved  round  the  blowing  up  of  kings,  of 
demolishing  established  order.  Neither  kings 
were  blown  up  nor  order  demolished,  but  it  was 
a  congenial  topic  over  which  to  while  away  an 
evening.  This  was  in  the  German  states;  in 
Russia  it  was  a  different  matter. 

Had  Carmichael  not  fallen  a-dreaming  over 
his  pipe  he  would  have  seen  the  old  man  pass 
three  slips  of  paper  across  the  table;  he  would 
have  seen  the  carter,  the  butcher,  and  the  baker 


74  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

pocket  these  slips  stolidly ;  he  would  have  seen  the 
mountaineer  wave  his  hand  sharply  and  the  trio 
rise  and  disperse.  And  perhaps  it  would  have 
been  well  for  him  to  have  noted  these  singular 
manifestations  of  conspiracy,  since  shortly  he 
was  to  become  somewhat  involved.  It  was  grow 
ing  late;  so  Carmichael  left  the  Black  Eagle, 
nursing  the  sunken  ember  in  his  pipe  and  sur 
rendering  no  part  of  his  dream. 

Intermediately  the  mountaineer  paid  his  score 
and  started  for  the  stairs  which  led  to  the  bed 
rooms  above.  But  he  stopped  at  the  bar.  A  very 
old  man  was  having  a  pail  filled  with  hot  cabbage 
soup.  It  was  the  ancient  clock-mender  across 
the  way.  The  mountaineer  was  startled  out  of  his 
habitual  reserve,  but  he  recovered  his  composure 
almost  instantly.  The  clock-mender,  his  heavy 
glasses  hanging  crookedly  on  his  nose,  his  whole 
aspect  that  of  a  weary,  broken  man,  took  down 
his  pail  and  shuffled  noiselessly  out.  The  moun 
taineer  followed  him  cautiously.  Once  in  his 
shop  the  clock -mender  poured  the  steaming  soup 
into  a  bowl,  broke  bread  in  it,  and  began  his 
evening  meal.  The  other,  his  face  pressed 
against  the  dim  pane,  stared  and  s bared. 


THE    YOUNG   VINTNER     75 

"Gott  in  Himmel!  It  is  he!"  he  breathed,  then 
stepped  back  into  the  shadow,  while  the  moisture 
from  his  breath  slowly  faded  and  disappeared 
from  the  window-pane. 


CHAPTER  V 

A  COMPATRIOT 

KRUMERWEG  was  indeed  a  crooked  way. 
It  formed  a  dozen  elbows  and  ragged 
half -circles  as  it  slunk  off  from  the  Adlergasse. 
Streets  have  character  even  as  humans,  and  the 
Krumerweg  reminded  one  of  a  person  who  was 
afraid  of  being  followed.  The  shadow  of  the 
towering  bergs  lay  upon  it,  and  the  few  stars 
that  peered  down  through  the  narrow  crevice  of 
rambling  gables  were  small,  as  if  the  brilliant 
planets  had  neither  time  nor  inclination  to  watch 
over  such  a  place.  And  yet  there  lived  in  the 
Krumerweg  many  a  kind  and  loyal  heart, 
stricken  with  poverty.  In  old  times  the  street 
had  had  an  evil  name,  now  it  possessed  only  a  pit 
iful  one. 

It  was  half  after  nine  when  Gretchen  and  the 
vintner  picked  their  way  over  cobbles  pitted  here 
and  there  with  mud-holes.  They  were  arm  in  arm, 
76 


A    COMPATRIOT  77 

and  they  laughed  when  they  stumbled,  laughed 
lightly,  as  youth  always  laughs  when  in  love. 

"Only  a  little  farther,"  said  Gretchen,  for  the 
vintner  had  never  before  passed  over  this  way. 

"Long  as  it  is  and  crooked,  Heaven  knows  it 
is  short  enough !"  He  encircled  her  with  his  arms 
and  kissed  her.  "I  love  you!  I  love  you!"  he 
said. 

Gretchen  was  penetrated  with  rapture,  for  her 
ears,  sharp  with  love  and  the  eternal  doubting  of 
man,  knew  that  falsehood  could  not  lurk  in  such 
music.  This  handsome  boy  loved  her.  Buffeted 
as  she  had  been,  she  could  separate  the  false  from 
the  true.  Come  never  so  deep  a  sorrow,  there 
would  always  be  this — he  loved  her.  Her  bosom 
swelled,  her  heart  throbbed,  and  she  breathed  in 
ecstasy  the  sweet  chill  air  that  rushed  through 
the  broken  street. 

"After  the  vintage,"  she  said,  giving  his  arm 
a  pressure.  For  this  handsome  fellow  was  to  be 
her  husband  when  the  vines  were  pruned  and 
freshened  against  the  coming  winter. 

"Aye,  after  the  vintage,"  he  echoed ;  but  there 
was  tragedy  in  his  heart  as  deep  and  profound 
as  his  love. 


78  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"My  grandmother — I  call  her  that  for  I 
haven't  any  grandmother — is  old  and  seldom 
leaves  the  house.  I  promised  that  after  work  to 
night  I'd  bring  my  man  home  and  let  her  see  how 
handsome  he  is.  She  is  always  saying  that  we 
need  a  man  about;  and  yet,  I  can  do  a  man's 
work  as  well  as  the  next  one.  I  love  you,  too, 
Leo !"  She  pulled  his  hand  to  her  lips  and  quick 
ly  kissed  it,  frightened  but  unashamed. 

"Gretchen,  Gretchen !" 

She  stopped.  "What  is  it?"  keenly.  "There 
was  pain  in  your  voice." 

"The  thought  of  how  I  love  you  hurts  me. 
There  is  nothing  else,  nothing,  neither  riches  nor 
crowns,  nothing  but  you,  Gretchen.  How  long 
ago  was  it  I  met  you  first?" 

"Two  weeks." 

"Two  weeks  ?  Is  it  not  years  ?  Have  I  not  al 
ways  known  and  loved  you?" 

"And  I !  What  an  empty  heart  and  head  were 
mine  till  that  wonderful  day !  You  were  tired  and 
dusty  and  footsore ;  you  had  walked  some  twenty 
odd  miles;  yet  you  helped  me  with  the  geese. 
There  were  almost  tears  in  your  eyes,  but  I  knew 
that  your  heart  was  a  man's  when  you  smiled  at 


A    COMPATRIOT  79 

me."  She  stopped  again  and  turned  him  round 
to  her.  "And  you  love  me  like  this  ?" 

"Whatever  betide,  Lieberherz,  whatever  be 
fall."  And  he  embraced  her  with  a  fierce  tender 
ness,  and  so  strong  was  he  in  the  moment  that 
Gretchen  gave  a  cry.  He  kissed  her,  not  on  the 
lips,  but  on  the  fine  white  forehead,  reverently. 

They  proceeded,  Gretchen  subdued  and  the 
vintner  silent,  until  they  came  to  the  end  of  their 
journey  at  number  forty  in  the  Krumerweg.  It 
was  a  house  of  hanging  gables,  almost  as  old  as 
the  town  itself,  solid  and  grim  and  taciturn. 
There  are  some  houses  which  talk  like  gossips, 
noisy,  obtrusive  and  provocative.  Number  forty 
was  like  an  old  warrior,  gone  to  his  chair  by  the 
fireside,  who  listens  to  the  small-talk  of  his  neigh 
bors  saturninely.  What  was  it  all  about  ?  Had  he 
not  seen  battles  and  storms,  revolutions  and 
bloodshed?  The  prattle  of  children  was  pref 
erable. 

Gretchen's  grandmother,  Frau  Schwarz, 
owned  the  house ;  it  was  all  that  barricaded  her 
from  poverty's  wolves,  and,  what  with  sundry 
taxes  and  repairs  and  tenants  who  paid  infre 
quently,  it  was  little  enough.  Whatever  luxuries 


80  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

entered  at  number  forty  were  procured  by 
Gretchen  herself.  At  present  the  two  stories 
were  occupied;  the  second  by  a  malter  and  his 
brood  of  children,  the  third  by  a  woman  who  was 
partially  bedridden.  The  lower  or  ground  floor 
of  four  rooms  she  reserved  for  herself.  As  a 
matter  of  fact  the  forward  room,  with  its  huge 
middle-age  fireplace  and  the  great  square  of 
beamed  and  plastered  walls  and  stone  flooring, 
was  sizable  for  all  domestic  purposes.  Gretchen's 
pallet  stood  in  a  small  alcove  and  the  old  woman's 
bed  by  the  left  of  the  fire. 

Gretchen  opened  the  door,  which  was  unlocked. 
There  was  no  light  in  the  hall.  She  pressed  her 
lover  in  her  arms,  kissed  him  lightly,  and  pushed 
him  into  the  living-room.  A  log  smoldered  dim 
ly  on  the  irons.  Gretchen  ran  forward,  turned 
over  the  log,  lighted  two  candles,  then  kissed  the 
old  woman  seated  in  the  one  comfortable  chair. 
The  others  were  simply  three-legged  stools. 
There  was  little  else  in  the  room,  save  a  poor  re 
production  of  the  Virgin  Mary. 

"Here  I  am,  grandmother!" 

"And  who  is  here  with  you?"  sharply  but  not 
unkindly. 


A    COM  PATRIOT  81 

"My  man!"  cried  Gretchen  gaily,  her  eyes 
bright  as  the  candle  flames. 

"Bring  him  near  me." 

Gretchen  gathered  up  two  stools  and  placed 
them  on  either  side  of  her  grandmother  and  mo 
tioned  to  the  vintner  to  sit  down.  He  did  so, 
easily  and  without  visible  embarrassment,  even 
though  the  black  eyes  plunged  a  glance  into  his. 

Her  hair  was  white  and  thin,  her  nose  aquiline, 
her  lips  fallen  in,  a  cobweb  of  wrinkles  round  her 
eyes,  down  her  cheeks,  under  her  chin.  But  her 
sight  was  undimmed. 

"Where  are  you  from?  You  are  not  a  Drei- 
berger." 

"From  the  north,  grandmother,"  forcing  a 
smile  to  his  lips. 

The  reply  rather  gratified  her. 

"Your  name." 

"Leopold  Dietrich,  a  vintner  by  trade." 

"You  speak  like  a  Hanovarian  or  a  Prussian." 

"I  have  passed  some  time  in  both  countries.  I 
have  wandered  about  a  good  deal." 

"Give  me  your  hand." 

The  vintner  looked  surprised  for  a  moment. 
Gretchen  approved.  So  he  gave  the  old  woman 


82  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

his  left  hand.  The  grandmother  smoothed  it  out 
upon  her  own  and  bent  her  shrewd  eyes.  Silence. 
Gretchen  could  hear  the  malter  stirring  above; 
the  log  cracked  and  burst  into  flame.  A  frown 
began  to  gather  on  the  vintner's  brow  and  a 
sweat  in  his  palm. 

"I  see  many  strange  things  here,"  said  the 
palmist,  in  a  brooding  tone. 

"And  what  do  you  see?"  asked  Gretchen  ea 
gerly. 

"I  see  very  little  of  vineyards.  I  see  riches, 
pomp ;  I  see  vast  armies  moving  against  each 
other;  there  is  the  smell  of  powder  and  fire; 
devastation.  I  do  not  see  you,  young  man, 
among  those  who  tramp  with  guns  on  their  shoul 
ders.  You  ride ;  there  is  gold  on  your  arms.  You 
will  become  great ;  but  I  do  not  understand.  I  do 
not  understand,"  closing  her  eyes  for  a  moment. 

The  vintner  sat  upright,  his  chin  truculent, 
his  arm  tense. 

"War !"  he  murmured. 

Gretchen's  heart  sank;  there  was  joy  in  his 
voice. 

"Go  on,  grandmother,"  she  whispered. 

"Shall  I  live  ?"  asked  the  vintner,  whose  belief 


A    COM  PATRIOT  83 

in  prescience  till  this  hour  had  been  of  a  negative 
quality. 

"There  is  nothing  here  save  death  in  old  age, 
vintner."  Her  gnarled  hand  seized  his  in  a  vise. 
"Do  you  mean  well  by  my  girl  ?" 

"Grandmother!"  Gretchen  remonstrated. 

"Silence!" 

The  vintner  withdrew  his  hand  slowly. 

"Is  this  the  hand  of  a  liar  and  a  cheat?  Is  it 
the  hand  of  a  dishonest  man  ?" 

"There  is  no  dishonesty  there;  but  there  are 
lines  I  do  not  understand.  Oh,  I  can  not  see 
everything;  it  is  like  seeing  people  in  a  mist. 
They  pass  instantly  and  disappear.  But  I  re 
peat,  do  you  mean  well  by  my  girl?" 

"Before  God  and  His  angels  I  love  her ;  before 
all  mankind  I  would  gladly  declare  it.  Gretchen 
shall  never  come  to  harm  at  these  hands.  I 
swear  it." 

"I  believe  you."  The  old  woman's  form  re 
laxed  its  tenseness. 

"Thanks,  grandmother,"  said  Gretchen. 
"Now,  read  what  my  hand  says." 

The  old  woman  took  the  hand.  She  loved 
Gretchen. 


84  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"I  read  that  you  are  gentle  and  brave  and 
cheerful,  that  you  have  a  loyal  heart  and  a  pure 
mind.  I  read  that  you  are  in  love  and  that  some 
day  you  will  be  happy."  A  smile  went  over  her 
face,  a  kind  of  winter  sunset. 

"You  are  not  looking  at  my  hand  at  all, 
grandmother,"  said  Gretchen  in  reproach. 

"I  do  not  need,  my  child.  Your  life  is  writ 
ten  in  your  face."  The  grandmother  spoke 
again  to  the  vintner.  "So  you  will  take  her 
away  from  me?" 

"Will  it  be  necessary?"  he  returned  quietly. 
"Have  you  any  objection  to  my  becoming  your 
foster  grandchild,  such  as  Gretchen  is  ?" 

The  old  woman  made  no  answer.  She  closed 
her  eyes  and  did  not  open  them.  Gretchen  mo 
tioned  that  this  was  a  sign  that  the  interview 
was  ended.  But  as  he  rose  to  his  feet  there  was 
a  sound  outside.  A  carriage  had  stopped.  Some 
one  opened  the  door  and  began  to  climb  the 
stairs.  The  noise  ceased  only  when  the  visitor 
reached  the  top  landing.  Then  all  became  still 
again. 

"There  is  something  strange  going  on  up 
there,"  said  Gretchen  in  a  whisper. 


A    COMPATRIOT  85 

"In  what  way?"  asked  the  vintner  in  like  un 
dertones. 

"Three  times  a  veiled  lady  has  called  at  night, 
three  times  a  man  muffled  up  so  one  could  not 
see  his  face." 

"Let  us  not  question  our  twenty-crowns  rent, 
Gretchen,"  interrupted  the  grandmother,  wak 
ing.  "So  long  as  no  one  is  disturbed,  so  long 
as  the  police  are  not  brought  to  our  door,  it  is 
not  our  affair.  Leopold,  Gretchen,  give  me  your 
hands."  She  placed  them  one  upon  the  other, 
then  spread  out  her  hands  above  their  heads. 
"The  Holy  Mother  bring  happiness  and  good 
luck  to  you,  Gretchen." 

"And  to  me  ?"  said  the  youth. 

"I  could  not  wish  you  better  luck  than  to  give 
you  Gretchen.  Now,  leave  me." 

The  vintner  picked  up  his  hat  and  Gretchen 
led  him  to  the  street. 

He  hurried  away,  giving  no  glance  at  the 
closed  carriage,  the  sleepy  driver,  the  weary 
horse.  Neither  did  he  heed  the  man  dressed  as 
a  carter  who,  when  he  saw  the  vintner,  turned 
and  followed.  Finally,  when  the  vintner  veered 
into  the  Adlergasse,  he  stopped,  his  hands 


86  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

clenched,  his  teeth  hard  upon  each  other.  He 
even  leaned  against  the  wall  of  a  house,  his  face 
for  the  moment  hidden  in  his  arm. 

"Wretch  that  I  am!  Damnable  wretch! 
Krumerweg,  Krumerweg!  Crooked  way,  in 
deed!"  He  flung  down  his  arm  passionately. 
"There  will  be  a  God  up  yonder,"  looking  at 
the  stars.  "He  will  see  into  my  heart  and  know 
that  it  is  not  bad,  only  young.  Oh,  Gretchen !" 

"Gretchen?"  The  carter  stepped  into  a 
shadow  and  waited. 

Carmichael  did  not  enjoy  the  opera  that 
night.  He  had  missed  the  first  acts,  and  the  last 
was  gruesome,  and  the  royal  box  was  vacant. 
Outside  he  sat  down  on  one  of  the  benches  near 
the  fountains  in  the  Platz.  His  prolific  imag 
ination  took  the  boundaries.  Ah !  That  morn 
ing's  ride,  down  the  southern  path  of  the  moun 
tains,  the  black  squirrels  in  the  branches,  the  red 
fox  in  the  bushes,  the  clear  spring,  and  the 
drink  out  of  the  tin  cup  which  hung  there  for 
the  thirsty!  How  prettily  she  had  wrapped  a 
leaf  over  the  rusted  edge  of  the  cup !  The  leaf 
lay  in  his  pocket.  He  had  kissed  a  dozen  times 


A    COM  PATRIOT  87 

the  spot  where  her  lips  had  pressed  it.  Blind 
fool !  Deeper  and  deeper ;  he  knew  that  he  never 
could  go  back  to  that  safe  ledge  of  the  heart- 
free.  Time  could  not  change  his  heart,  not  if 
given  the  thousand  years  of  the  wandering  Jew. 

Bah!  He  would  walk  round  the  fountain 
and  cool  his  crazy  pulse.  He  was  Irish,  Irish 
to  the  core.  Would  any  one,  save  an  Irishman, 
give  way,  day  after  day,  to  those  insane  maun- 
derings  ?  His  mood  was  savage ;  he  was  at  odds 
with  the  world,  and  most  of  all,  with  himself. 
If  only  some  one  would  come  along  and  shoulder 
him  rudely!  He  laughed  ruefully.  He  was  in 
a  fine  mood  to  make  an  ass  of  himself. 

He  left  the  bench  and  strolled  round  the  foun 
tain,  his  cane  behind  his  back,  his  chin  in  his 
collar.  He  had  made  the  circle  several  times, 
then  he  blundered  into  some  one.  The  fight 
ing  mood  was  gone  now,  the  walk  having  calmed 
him.  He  murmured  a  short  apology  for  his 
clumsiness  and  started  on,  without  even  look 
ing  at  the  animated  obstacle. 

"Just  a  moment,  my  studious  friend." 

"Wallenstein?  I  didn't  see  you."  Carmichael 
halted. 


88 

"That  was  evident,"  replied  the  colonel  jest 
ingly.  "Heavens!  Have  you  really  cares  of 
state,  that  you  walk  five  times  round  this  foun 
tain,  bump  into  me,  and  start  to  go  on  without 
so  much  as  a  how-do-you-do  ?" 

"I'm  absent-minded,"  Carmichael  admitted. 

"Not  always,  my  friend." 

"No,  not  always.  You  have  some  other  mean 
ing?" 

"That  is  possible.  Now,  I  do  not  believe  that 
it  was  absent-mindedness  which  made  you  step 
in  between  me  and  that  pretty  goose-girl,  the 
other  night." 

"Ah!"     Carmichael  was  all  alertness. 

"It  was  not,  I  believe?" 

"It  was  coldly  premeditated,"  said  Carmi 
chael,  folding  his  arms  over  his  cane  which  he 
still  held  behind  his  back.  His  attitude  and 
voice  were  pleasant. 

"It  was  not  friendly." 

"Not  to  you,  perhaps.  But  that  happens  to 
be  an  innocent  girl,  Colonel.  You're  no  Herod. 
There  was  nothing  selfish  in  my  act.  You  really 
annoyed  her." 

"Pretense ;  they  always  begin  that  way." 


A    COMPATRIOT  89 

"I  confess  I  know  little  about  that  kind  of 
hunting,  but  I'm  sure  you've  started  the  wrong 
quarry  this  time." 

"You  are  positive  that  you  were  disinter 
ested?" 

"Come,  come,  Colonel,  this  sounds  like  the  be 
ginning  of  a  quarrel ;  and  a  quarrel  should  never 
come  into  life  between  you  and  me.  I  taught 
you  draw-poker;  you  ought  to  be  grateful  for 
that,  and  to  accept  my  word  regarding  my  dis 
interestedness." 

"I  do  not  wish  any  quarrel,  my  Captain;  but 
that  girl's  face  has  fascinated  me.  I  propose  to 
see  her  as  often  as  I  like." 

"I  have  no  objection  to  offer;  but  I  told 
Gretchen  that  if  any  one,  no  matter  who,  ever 
offers  her  disrespect,  to  report  the  matter  to  me 
at  the  consulate." 

"That  is  meddling." 

"Call  it  what  you  like,  my  Colonel." 

"Well,  in  case  she  is  what  you  consider  in 
sulted,  what  will  you  do?"  a  challenge  in  his 
tones. 

"Report  the  matter  to  the  police." 

Wallenstein  laughed. 


90  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"And  if  the  girl  finds  no  redress  there," 
tranquilly,  "to  the  chancellor." 

"You  would  go  so  far?" 

"Even  further,"  unruffled. 

"It  looks  as  though  you  had  drawn  your 
saber,"  with  irony. 

"Oh,  I  can  draw  it,  Colonel,  and  when  I  do  I 
guarantee  you'll  find  no  rust  on  it.  Come,"  and 
Carmichael  held  out  his  hand  amicably,  "Gret- 
chen  is  already  in  love  with  one  of  her  kind.  Let 
the  child  be  in  peace.  What!  Is  not  the  new 
ballerina  enough  conquest?  They  are  all  talking 
about  it." 

"Good  night,  Herr  Carmichael!"  The  col 
onel,  ignoring  the  friendly  hand,  saluted  stiffly, 
wheeled  abruptly,  and  left  Carmichael  staring 
rather  stupidly  at  his  empty  hand. 

"Well,  I'm  hanged!  All  right,"  with  a  tilt 
of  the  shoulders.  "One  enemy  more  or  less 
doesn't  matter.  I'm  not  afraid  of  anything  save 
this  fool  heart  of  mine.  If  he  says  an  ill  word 
to  Gretchen,  and  I  hear  of  it,  I'll  cane  the  black 
guard,  for  that's  what  he  is  at  bottom.  Well,  I 
was  looking  for  trouble,  and  here  it  is,  sure 
enough." 


A    COMPATRIOT  91 

He  saw  a  carriage  coming  along.  He  rec 
ognized  the  white  horse  as  it  passed  the  lamps. 
He  stood  still  for  a  space,  undecided.  Then  he 
sped  rapidly  toward  the  side  gates  of  the  royal 
gardens.  The  vehicle  stopped  there.  But  this 
time  no  woman  came  out.  Carmichael  would 
have  recognized  that  lank  form  anywhere.  It 
was  the  chancellor.  Well,  what  of  it?  Couldn't 
the  chancellor  go  out  in  a  common  hack  if  he 
wanted  to?  But  who  was  the  lady  in  the  veil? 

"I've  an  idea!" 

As  soon  as  the  chancellor  disappeared,  Car 
michael  hailed  the  coachman. 

"Drive  me  through  the  gardens." 

"It  is  too  late,  Herr." 

"Well,  drive  me  up  and  down  the  Strasse 
while  I  finish  this  cigar." 

"Two  crowns." 

"Three,  if  your  horse  behaves  well." 

"He's  as  gentle  as  a  lamb,  Herr." 

"And  doubtless  will  be  served  as  one  before 
long.  Can't  you  throw  back  the  top?" 

"In  one  minute!"  Five  crowns  and  three 
made  eight  crowns ;  not  a  bad  business  these  dull 
times. 


92  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

Carmichael  lolled  in  the  worn  cushions,  won 
dering  whether  or  not  to  question  his  man.  But 
it  was  so  unusual  for  a  person  of  such  particular 
habits  as  the  chancellor  to  ride  in  an  ordinary 
carriage.  Carmichael  slid  over  to  the  forward 
seat  and  touched  the  jehu  on  the  back. 

"Where  did  you  take  the  chancellor  to-night  ?" 
he  asked. 

"Du  lleber  Gott!  Was  that  his  excellency? 
He  said  he  was  the  chief  steward." 

"So  he  is,  my  friend.  I  was  only  jesting. 
Where  did  you  take  him?" 

"I  took  him  to  the  Krumerweg.  He  was  there 
half  an  hour.  Number  forty." 

"Where  did  you  take  the  veiled  lady?" 

The  coachman  drew  in  suddenly  and  appre 
hensively.  "Herr,  are  you  from  the  police?" 

"Thousand  thunders,  no !  It  was  by  accident 
that  I  stood  near  the  gate  when  she  got  out. 
Who  was  she?" 

"That  is  better.  They  both  told  me  that  they 
were  giving  charity.  I  did  not  see  the  lady's 
face,  but  she  went  into  number  forty,  the  same 
as  the  steward.  You  won't  forget  the  extra 
crown,  Herr?" 


A    COMPATRIOT  93 

"No ;  I'll  make  it  five.  Turn  back  and  leave 
me  at  the  Grand  Hotel."  Then  he  muttered: 
"Krumerweg,  crooked  way,  number  forty.  If  I 
see  this  old  side-paddler  stopping  at  the  palace 
steps  again,  I'll  take  a  look  at  number  forty  my 
self." 

On  the  return  to  the  hotel  the  station  omni 
bus  had  arrived  with  a  solitary  guest.  A 
steamer  trunk  and  a  couple  of  bags  were  being 
trundled  in  by  the  porter,  while  the  concierge 
was  helping  a  short,  stocky  man  to  the  ground. 
He  hurried  into  the  hotel,  signed  the  police  slips, 
and  asked  for  his  room.  He  seemed  to  be  afraid 
of  the  dark.  He  was  gone  when  Carmichael 
went  into  the  office. 

"Your  Excellency,"  said  the  concierge,  rub 
bing  his  hands  and  smiling  after  the  manner  of 
concierges  born  in  Switzerland,  "a  compatriot 
of  yours  arrived  this  evening." 

"What  name?"  indifferently.  Compatriots 
were  always  asking  impossible  things  of  Car 
michael,  introductions  to  the  grand  duke,  invi 
tations  to  balls,  and  so  forth,  and  swearing  to 
have  him  recalled  if  he  refused  to  perform  these 
offices. 


94  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

The  concierge  picked  up  the  slips  which  were 
to  be  forwarded  to  the  police. 

"He  is  Hans  Grumbach,  of  New  York." 

"An  adopted  compatriot,  it  would  seem.  He'll 
probably  be  over  to  the  consulate  to-morrow  to 
have  his  passports  looked  into.  Good  night." 

So  Hans  Grumbach  passed  out  of  his  mind; 
but  for  all  that,  fortune  and  opportunity  were 
about  to  knock  on  Carmichael's  door.  For  there 
was  a  great  place  in  history  ready  for  Hans 
Grumbach. 


CHAPTER  VI 

AT    THE    BLACK    EAGLE 

r  I  iHE  day  promised  to  be  mild.  There  was 
JL  not  a  cloud  anywhere,  and  the  morning 
mists  had  risen  from  the  valleys.  It  was  good 
to  stand  in  the  sunshine  which  seemed  to  draw 
forth  all  the  vagaries  and  weariness  of  sleep 
from  the  mind  and  body.  Hans  Grumbach 
shook  himself  gratefully.  He  was  standing  on 
the  curb  in  front  of  the  Grand  Hotel,  his  back 
to  the  sun.  It  was  nine  o'clock.  The  broad 
Konig  Strasse  shone,  the  white  stone  of  the  pal 
aces  glared,  the  fountains  glistened,  and  the  col 
oring  tree  tops  scintillated  like  the  head-dress  of 
an  Indian  prince.  Hans  was  short  but  strongly 
built;  a  mild  blue-eyed  German,  smooth-faced, 
ruddy-cheeked,  white-haired,  with  a  brown  but 
ton  of  a  nose.  He  drank  his  beer  with  the  best 
of  them,  but  it  never  got  so  far  as  his  nose  save 
95 


96  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

from  the  outside.  His  suit  was  tight-fitting, 
but  the  checks  were  ample,  and  the  watch-chain 
a  little  too  heavy,  and  the  huge  garnet  on  his 
third  finger  was  not  in  good  taste.  But  what's 
the  odds?  Grumbach  was  satisfied,  and  it's  one's 
own  satisfaction  that  counts  most. 

Presently  two  police  officers  came  along  and 
went  into  the  hotel.  Grumbach  turned  with  a 
sigh  and  followed  them.  Doubtless  they  had 
come  to  look  over  his  passports.  And  this  hap 
pened  to  be  the  case. 

The  senior  officer  unfolded  the  precious  docu 
ment. 

"It  is  not  yet  viseed  by  your  consul,"  said 
the  officer. 

"I  arrived  late  last  night.  I  shall  see  him 
this  morning,"  replied  Grumbach. 

"You  were  not  born  in  America?" 

"Oh,  no ;  I  came  from  Bavaria." 

"At  what  age?" 

"I  was  twenty." 

"Did  you  go  to  America  with  your  parents  ?" 

"No.    I  was  alone." 

"You  still  have  your  permit  to  leave  Ba 
varia  ?" 


AT    THE    BLACK    EAGLE     97 

"I  believe  so;  I  am  not  certain.  I  never 
thought  in  those  days  I  should  become  rich 
enough  to  travel." 

The  word  that  tingled  with  gold  soothed  the 
suspicious  ear  of  the  officer. 

"What  is  your  business  in  America?" 

"I  am  a  plumber,  now  retired." 

"And  your  business  here?" 

"Simply  pleasure." 

"You  are  forty?"  said  the  officer,  referring  to 
the  passports. 

"Yes." 

"This  is  rather  young  to  retire  from  busi 
ness." 

"Not  in  America,"  easily. 

"True,  everybody  grows  rich  there,  with 
gold  mines  popping  open  at  one's  feet.  It  must 
be  a  great  country."  The  officer  sighed  as  he 
refolded  the  documents.  "As  soon  as  these  are 
approved  by  his  excellency  the  American  consul, 
kindly  have  a  porter  bring  them  over  to  the 
bureau  of  police.  It  will  be  only  a  matter  of 
form.  I  shall  return  them  at  once." 

Grumbach  produced  a  Louis  Napoleon  which 
was  then  as  now  acceptable  that  side  of  the 


98  THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

Rhine.  It  was  not  done  with  pomposity,  but 
rather  with  the  exuberance  of  a  man  whose  purse 
and  letter  of  credit  possess  an  assuring  circum 
ference. 

"Drink  a  bottle,  you  and  your  comrade,"  he 
said. 

This  the  officer  promised  to  do  forthwith.  He 
returned  the  passports,  put  a  hand  to  his  cap 
respectfully  and,  followed  by  his  assistant, 
walked  off  briskly. 

Grumbach  took  off  his  derby  and  wiped  the 
perspiration  from  his  forehead.  This  moisture 
had  not  been  wrung  forth  by  any  atmospheric 
effect.  From  the  top  of  his  forehead  to  the  cow 
lick  on  the  back  of  his  head  ran  a  broad  white 
scar.  At  one  time  or  another  Grumbach  had 
been  on  the  ragged  edge  of  the  long  journey. 
He  went  out  of  doors.  There  is  nothing  like 
sunshine  to  tonic  the  ebbing  courage. 

Coming  up  the  thoroughfare,  with  a  dash  of 
spirit  and  color,  was  a  small  troop  of  horses. 
The  sunlight  broke  upon  the  steel  and  silver. 
A  waiter,  cleaning  off  the  little  iron  tables  on 
the  sidewalk,  paused.  The  riders  passed,  all 
but  two  in  splendid  uniforms.  Grumbach 


AT    THE    BLACK   EAGLE     99 

watched  them  till  they  disappeared  into  the  pal 
ace  courtyard.  He  called  to  the  waiter. 

"Who  are  they?" 

"The  grand  duke  and  some  of  his  staff, 
Herr." 

"The  grand  duke?  Who  was  the  gentleman 
in  civilian  clothes?" 

"That  was  his  excellency,  Herr  Carmichael, 
the  American  consul." 

"Very  good.     And  the  young  lady?" 

"Her  serene  highness,  the  Princess  Hilde- 
garde." 

"Bring  me  a  glass  of  beer,"  said  Grumbach, 
sinking  down  at  a  table.  A  thousand  questions 
surged  against  his  lips,  but  he  kept  them  shut 
with  all  the  stolidity  of  his  native  blood.  When 
the  waiter  set  the  beer  down  before  him,  he  said : 
"Where  does  Herr  Carmichael  live?" 

"The  consulate  is  in  the  Adlergasse.  He 
himself  lives  here  at  the  Grand  Hotel.  'Achl 
He  is  a  great  man,  Herr  Carmichael." 

"So?" 

"A  friend  of  the  grand  duke,  a  friend  of  her 
serene  highness,  liked  everywhere,  a  fine  shot 
and  a  great  fencer,  and  rides  a  horse  as  if  he 


100          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

were  sewn  to  the  saddle.  And  all  the  ladies  ad 
mire  him  because  he  dances." 

"So  he  dances?  Quite  a  lady's  man."  To 
Grumbach  a  man  who  danced  was  a  lady's  man, 
something  to  be  held  in  contempt. 

"You  would  not  call  him  a  lady's  man,  if  you 
mean  he  wastes  his  time  on  them." 

"But  you  say  he  dances  ?" 

"Ach,  Gott!  Don't  we  all  dance  to  some  tune 
or  other?"  cried  the  waiter  philosophically. 

"You  are  right;  different  music,  different 
jigs.  Take  the  coppers." 

"Thanks,  Herr."  The  waiter  continued  his 
work. 

So  Herr  Carmichael  lived  here.  That  would 
be  convenient.  Grumbach  decided  to  wait  for 
him.  He  had  seen  enough  of  men  to  know  if  he 
could  trust  the  consul.  He  glared  at  the  amber- 
gold  in  the  glass,  took  a  vigorous  swallow,  and 
smacked  his  lips.  A  sentimental  old  fool ;  he  was 
neither  more  nor  less. 

The  wait  for  Carmichael  was  short.  The 
American  consul  came  along  with  energetic 
stride.  He  had  been  to  the  earlier  maneuvers, 
and  aside  from  coffee  and  bacon  he  had  had  no 


breakfast.  The  ride  and  the  cold  air  of  morn 
ing  had  made  him  ravenous.  Grumbach  rose 
and  caught  Carmichael  by  the  arm. 

"Your  pardon,  sir,"  he  said  in  good  English, 
"but  you  are  Mr.  Carmichael,  the  American 
consul?" 

"I  am." 

"Will  you  kindly  look  over  my  papers?" 
Grumbach  asked. 

"You  are  from  the  United  States?"  Then 
Carmichael  remembered  that  this  must  be  the 
compatriot  who  arrived  the  night  before.  "I 
shall  be  very  glad  to  see  you  in  the  Adlergasse 
at  half  after  ten.  It  is  one  flight  up,  next  door 
to  the  Black  Eagle.  Any  one  will  show  you  the 
way.  I  haven't  breakfasted  yet,  and  I  can  not 
transact  any  business  in  these  dusty  clothes. 
Good  morning." 

Grumbach  liked  the  consul's  smile.  More  than 
that,  he  recognized  instantly  that  this  hand 
some  young  man  was  a  gentleman.  •  The  in 
herent  respect  for  caste  had  not  been  beaten 
out  of  Grumbach's  blood;  he  had  come  from  a 
brood  in  a  peasant's  hovel.  To  him  the  word 
gentleman  would  always  signify  birth  and  good 


102          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

clothes ;  what  the  heart  and  mind  were  did  not 
matter  much. 

He  had  more  than  an  hour  to  idle  away,  so  he 
wandered  through  the  park,  admiring  the  fresh 
ness  of  the  green,  the  well-kept  flower-beds,  the 
crisp  hedges,  and  the  clean  graveled  paths. 
There  was  nothing  like  it  back  there  in  America. 
They  hadn't  the  time  there ;  everybody  was  in  the 
market,  speculating  in  bubbles.  He  admired  the 
snowy  fountains,  too,  and  the  doves  that  darted 
in  and  out  of  the  wind-blown  spray.  There  was 
nothing  like  this  in  America,  either.  He  was 
not  belittling;  he  was  only  making  comparisons. 
He  knew  that  he  would  be  far  happier  in  his 
adopted  country,  which  would  accomplish  all 
these  beautiful  things  farther  on. 

He  looked  up  heavenward,  where  the  three 
bergs  shouldered  the  dazzling  snow  into  the 
blue.  This  impressed  him  more  than  all  else; 
that  little  wrinkle  in  the  middle  berg's  ice  had 
been  there  when  he  was  a  boy.  Nothing  had 
changed  in  Dreiberg  save  the  Konig  Strasse, 
whose  cobbles  had  been  replaced  by  smooth 
blocks  of  wood.  At  times  he  sent  swift  but  un 
certain  glances  toward  the  palaces.  He  longed 


AT    THE    BLACK   EAGLE  103 

to  peer  through  the  great  iron  fence,  but  he 
smothered  this  desire.  He  would  find  out  what 
he  wanted  to  know  when  he  met  Carmichael  at 
the  consulate.  Here  the  bell  in  the  cathedral 
struck  the  tenth  hour;  not  a  semitone  had  this 
voice  of  bronze  changed  in  all  these  years.  It 
was  good  to  be  here  in  Dreiberg  again.  Should 
he  ask  the  way  to  the  Adlergasse?  Perhaps 
this  would  be  wiser.  So  he  put  the  question  to  a 
policeman.  The  officer  politely  gave  him  a  de 
tailed  route. 

"Follow  these  directions  and  you  will  have  no 
trouble  in  finding  the  Adlergasse." 

"Much  obliged." 

Trouble  ?  Scarcely !  He  had  put  out  his  first 
protest  against  the  world  in  the  Adlergasse, 
forty  years  since.  He  came  to  a  stand  before 
the  old  tavern.  Not  even  the  sign  had  been 
painted  anew,  though  the  oak  board  was  a  trifle 
paler  and  there  was  a  little  more  rust  on  the 
hinges.  Many  a  time  he  had  fought  with  the 
various  pot-boys.  He  wondered  if  there  were 
any  pot-boys  inside  now.  He  noted  the  dingy 
consulate  sign,  then  started  up  the  dark  and 
narrow  stairs.  The  consulate  door  stood  open. 


104 

A  clerk,  native  to  Ehrenstein,  was  writing  at  a 
table.  At  a  desk  by  the  window  sat  Carmichael, 
deep  in  a  volume  of  Dumas.  No  one  ever  hur 
ried  here;  no  one  ever  had  palpitation  of  the 
heart  over  business.  The  clerk  lifted  his  head. 

"Mr.  Carmichael?"  said  Grumbach  in  Eng 
lish. 

The  clerk  indicated  with  his  pen  toward  the 
individual  by  the  window.  Carmichael  read  on. 
Grumbach  had  assimilated  some  Americanisms. 
He  went  boldly  over  and  seated  himself  in  the 
chair  at  the  side  of  the  desk.  With  a  sigh  Car 
michael  left  Porthos  in  the  grotto  of  Locmaria. 

"I  am  Mr.  Grumbach.  I  spoke  to  you  this 
morning  about  my  passports.  Will  you  kindly 
look  them  over?" 

Carmichael  took  the  papers,  frowning  slightly. 
Grumbach  laid  his  derby  on  his  knees.  The 
consul  went  over  the  papers,  viseed  them,  and 
handed  them  to  their  owner. 

"You  will  have  no  trouble  going  about  with 
those,"  Carmichael  said  listlessly.  "How  long 
will  you  be  in  Dreiberg?" 

"I  do  not  know,"  said  Grumbach  truthfully. 

"Is  there  anything  I  can  do  for  you?" 


AT    THE    BLACK    EAGLE  105 

"There  is  only  one  thing,"  answered  Grum- 
bach,  "but  you  may  object,  and  I  shall  not  blame 
you  if  you  do.  It  will  be  a  great  favor." 

"What  do  you  wish?"  more  listlessly. 

"An  invitation  to  the  military  ball  at  the 
palace,  after  the  maneuvers,"  quietly. 

Carmichael  sat  up.  He  had  not  expected  so 
large  an  order  as  this. 

"I  am  afraid  you  are  asking  something  im 
possible  for  me  to  obtain,"  he  replied  coldly, 
thumbing  the  leaves  of  his  book. 

"Ah,  Mr.  Carmichael,  it  is  very  important 
that  I  should  be  there." 

"Explain." 

"I  can  give  you  no  explanations.  I  wish  to 
attend  this  ball.  I  do  not  care  to  meet  the  grand 
duke  or  any  one  else.  Put  me  in  the  gallery 
where  I  shall  not  be  noticed.  That  is  all  I  ask 
of  you." 

"That  might  be  done.  But  you  have  roused 
my  curiosity.  Your  request  is  cut  of  the  ordi 
nary.  You  have  some  purpose?" 

"A  perfectly  harmless  one,"  said  Grumbach, 
mopping  his  forehead. 

This  movement  brought  Carmichael's  eye  to 


106          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

the  scar.  Grumbach  acknowledged  the  stare  by 
running  his  finger  along  the  subject. 

"I  came  near  passing  in  my  checks  the  day 
I  got  that,"  he  volunteered.  "Everybody  looks 
at  it  when  I  take  off  my  hat.  I've  tried  tonics, 
but  the  hair  won't  grow  there." 

"Where  did  you  get  it?" 

"At  Gettysburg." 

"Gettysburg?"  with  a  lively  facial  change. 
"You  were  in  the  war?" 

"All  through  it." 

Carmichael  was  no  longer  indifferent.  He 
gave  his  hand. 

"I've  got  a  few  scars  myself.  What  regi 
ment?" 

"The  — th  cavalry,  New  York." 

"What  troop?"  with  growing  excitement. 

"C  troop." 

"I  was  captain  of  B  troop  in  the  same  regi 
ment.  Hurrah!  Work's  over  for  the  day. 
Come  along  with  me,  Grumbach,  and  we'll  talk 
it  over  down-stairs  in  the  Black  Eagle.  You're 
a  godsend.  C  troop!  Hanged  if  the  world 
doesn't  move  things  about  oddly.  I  was  in  the 
hospital  myself  after  Gettysburg;  a  ball  in  the 


AT    THE    BLACK   EAGLE  107 

leg.  And  I've  rheumatism  even  now  when  a 
damp  spell  comes." 

So  down  to  the  tavern  they  went,  and  there 
they  talked  the  battles  over,  sundry  tankards 
interpolating.  It  was  "Do  you  remember  this  ?" 
and,  "Do  you  recall  that  ?"  with  diagrams  drawn 
in  beer  on  the  oaken  table. 

"But  there's  one  thing,  my  boy,"  said  Car- 
michael. 

"What's  that?" 

"The  odds  were  on  our  side,  or  we'd  be  fight 
ing  yet." 

"That  we  would.  The  poor  devils  were  al 
ways  hungry  when  we  whipped  them  badly." 

"But  you're  from  this  side  of  the  water?" 

"Yes;  went  over  when  I  was  twenty-two." 
Grumbach  sucked  his  pipe  stolidly. 

"What  part  of  Germany?" 

"Bavaria;  it  is  so  written  in  my  passports." 

"Munich?" 

Grumbach  circled  the  room.  All  the  near 
tables  were  vacant.  The  Black  Eagle  was  gen 
erally  a  lonely  place  till  late  in  the  afternoon. 
Grumbach  touched  the  scar  tenderly.  Could  he 
trust  this  man?  Could  he  trust  any  one  in  the 


108          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

world?  The  impulse  came  to  trust  Carmichael, 
and  he  did  not  disregard  it. 

"I  was  born  in  this  very  street,"  he  whis 
pered. 

"Here?" 

"Sh!  Not  so  loud!  Yes,  in  this  very  street. 
But  if  the  police  knew,  I  wouldn't  be  worth 
that!" — with  a  snap  of  the  fingers.  "My  pass 
ports,  my  American  citizenship,  they  would  be 
worthless.  You  know  that." 

"But  what  does  this  all  mean?  What  have 
you  done  that  you  can't  come  back  here  openly  ?" 
Here  was  a  mystery.  This  man  with  the  kindly 
face  and  frank  eyes  could  be  no  ordinary  crim 
inal.  "Can  I  help  you  in  any  way  ?" 

"No;  no  one  can  help  me." 

"But  why  did  you  come  back  ?  You  were  safe 
enough  in  New  York." 

"Who  can  say  what  a  man  will  do?  Don't 
question  me.  Let  be.  I  have  said  too  much 
already.  Some  day  perhaps  I  shall  tell  you  why. 
When  I  went  away  I  was  thin  and  pale  and  had 
yellow  hair.  To-day  I  am  fat,  gray-headed;  I 
have  made  money.  Who  will  recognize  me  now? 
No  one." 


AT    THE    BLACK    EAGLE  109 

"But  your  name?" 

Grumbach  laughed  unmusically.  "Grumbach 
is  as  good  as  another.  Listen.  You  are  my  com 
rade  now;  we  have  shed  our  blood  on  the  same 
field.  There  is  no  tie  stronger  than  that.  When 
I  left  Dreiberg  there  was  a  reward  of  a  thou 
sand  crowns  for  me.  Dead  or  alive,  preferably 
dead." 

Carmichael  was  plainly  bewildered.  He  tried 
to  recall  the  past  history  of  Ehrenstein  which 
would  offer  a  niche  for  this  inoffensive-looking 
German.  He  was  blocked. 

"Dead  or  alive,"  he  repeated. 

"So." 

"You  were  mad  to  return." 

"I  know  it.  But  I  had  to  come;  I  couldn't 
help  it.  Oh,  don't  look  like  that !  I  never  hurt 
anybody,  unless  it  was  in  battle" — naively. 
"Ask  no  more,  my  friend.  I  promise  to  tell  you 
when  the  right  time  comes.  Now,  will  you  get 
me  that  invitation  to  the  gallery  at  the  military 
ball?" 

"I  will,  if  you  will  give  me  your  word,  as  a 
soldier,  as  a  comrade  in  arms,  that  you  have 
no  other  purpose  than  to  look  at  the  people." 


110          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"As  God  is  my  judge" — solemnly — "that  is 
all  I  wish  to  do.  Now,  what  has  happened  since 
I  went  away?  I  have  dared  to  ask  questions  of 
no  one." 

Carmichael  gave  him  a  brief  summary  of 
events,  principal  among  which  was  the  amazing 
restoration  of  the  Princess  Hildegarde.  When 
he  had  finished,  Grumbach  remained  dumb  and 
motionless  for  a  time. 

"And  what  is  her  serene  highness  like?" 

To  describe  the  Princess  Hildegarde  was  not 
only  an  easy  task,  but  a  pleasant  one  to  Car 
michael,  and  if  he  embroidered  this  description 
here  and  there,  Grumbach  was  too  deeply  con 
cerned  with  the  essential  points  to  notice  these 
variations  in  the  theme. 

"So  she  is  gentle  and  beautiful?  Why  not? 
Achl  You  should  have  seen  her  mother.  She 
was  the  most  beautiful  woman  in  all  Germany, 
and  she  sang  like  one  of  those  Italian  nightin 
gales.  I  recall  her  when  I  was  a  boy.  I  would 
gladly  have  died  at  a  word  from  her.  All  loved 
her.  The  king  of  Jugendheit  wanted  her,  but 
she  loved  the  grand  duke.  So  the  Princess 


AT    THE    BLACK   EAGLE  111 

Hildegarde  has  come  back  to  her  own?  God  is 
good!"  And  Grumbach  bent  his  head  rever 
ently. 

"Well,"  said  Carmichael,  beckoning  to  the 
waitress,  and  paying  the  score,  "if  any  trouble 
rises,  send  for  me.  You  don't  look  like  a  man 
who  has  done  anything  very  bad."  He  offered 
his  hand  again. 

Grumbach  pressed  it  firmly,  and  there  was  a 
moisture  in  his  eyes. 

Together  they  returned  to  the  Grand  Hotel 
for  lunch.  On  the  way  neither  talked  very  much. 
They  were  both  thinking  of  the  same  thing,  but 
from  avenues  diametrically  opposed.  Grumbach 
declined  Carmichael's  invitation  to  lunch,  and 
immediately  sought  his  own  room. 

Once  there,  he  closed  the  shutters  so  as  to 
admit  but  half  the  day's  light,  and  opened  his 
battered  trunk.  From  the  false  bottom,  which 
had  successfully  eluded  the  vigilance  of  a  dozen 
frontiers,  he  took  out  a  small  bundle.  This  he 
opened  carefully,  his  eyes  blurring.  Mad  fool 
that  he  had  been!  How  many  times  had  he 
gazed  at  these  trinkets  in  these  sixteen  or  more 


THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

years?  How  often  had  he  uttered  lamentations 
over  them?  How  many  times  had  the  talons  of 
remorse  gashed  his  heart? 

Two  little  yellow  shoes,  so  small  that  they  lay 
on  his  palm  as  lightly  as  two  butterflies ;  a 
little  cloak  trimmed  with  ermine ;  a  golden  locket 
shaped  like  a  heart! 


CHAPTER  VII 

AN    ELDER    BROTHER 

GRUMBACH  was  very  fond  of  music,  and 
in  America  there  were  never  any  bands 
except  at  political  meetings  or  at  the  head  of 
processions ;  and  that  wasn't  the  sort  of  music 
he  preferred.  There  was  nothing  at  the  Opera, 
so  he  decided  to  spend  the  earlier  part  of  the 
evening  in  the  public  gardens.  He  was  lonely ; 
he  had  always  been  lonely.  Men  who  carry 
depressing  secrets  generally  are.  He  searched 
covertly  among  the  many  faces  for  one  that  was 
familiar,  but  he  saw  none;  and  he  was  at  once 
glad,  and  sorry.  Yes,  there  was  one  face;  the 
rubicund  countenance  of  the  bandmaster.  It  was 
older,  more  wrinkled,  but  it  was  the  same.  How 
many  years  had  the  old  fellow  swung  the  baton  ? 
At  least  thirty  years.  In  his  boyhood  days 
Grumbach  had  put  that  brilliant  uniform  side 
by  side  with  the  grand  duke's.  As  it  was  impos- 
113 


THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

sible  for  him  ever  to  become  a  duke,  his  ambition 
had  been  to  arrive  at  the  next  greatest  thing — 
the  bandmaster.  As  he  neared  the  pavilion  he 
laughed  silently  and  grimly.  To  have  grown 
wealthy  as  a  master  plumber  instead!  So  much 
for  ambition ! 

Subsequently  he  found  himself  standing  be 
side  a  young  vintner  and  his  peasant  sweetheart. 
Their  hands  secretly  met  and  locked  behind  their 
backs.  Grumbach  sighed.  Never  would  he  know 
aught  of  this  double  love.  This  Eden  would 
never  have  any  gate  for  him  to  push  aside.  He 
would  always  go  his  way  alone. 

The  girl  turned  her  head.  Seeing  Grumbach, 
she  loosened  the  vintner's  hand. 

"Do  not  mind  me,  girl,"  said  Grumbach,  his 
face  broadening. 

The  girl  laughed  easily  and  without  confu 
sion.  Her  companion,  however,  flushed  under 
his  tan,  and  a  scowl  ran  over  his  forehead. 

The  band  struck  up,  and  the  little  comedy 
was  forgotten.  But  Grumbach  could  not  see 
anything  except  the  girl's  face,  the  fresh, 
exquisite  turn  of  her  profile.  Once  his  eye 
wandered  rather  guiltily.  Her  figure  was  in 


AN    ELDER    BROTHER     115 

keeping  with  her  face.  Then  he  saw  the  little 
wooden  shoes.  Ah,  well,  as  long  as  kings  sur 
rounded  themselves  with  armies  and  with  pomp, 
there  would  always  be  wooden  shoes.  The  band 
was  playing  Les  Huguenots,  and  the  girl 
hummed  the  air. 

"Do  not  go  there  to-night,  Gretchen,"  said 
the  vintner. 

"It  is  a  crown." 

"I  will  give  you  two  if  you  will  not  go,"  the 
vintner  urged. 

"Foolish  boy,  what  good  would  that  do?  We 
need  every  crown  we  have  or  can  get,  if  we  are 
to  be  married  soon.  And  you  have  not  gone  to 
work  yet.  And  every  day  costs  you  a  crown 
to  live,  and  more,  for  all  I  know.  You  spend 
a  crown  as  carelessly  as  if  all  you  had  to  do  was 
to  pick  them  off  the  vines.  Crowns  are  hard 
to  get." 

"When  one  is  happy,  one  does  not  stop  to 
bother  about  crowns,"  he  said  impatiently. 

"But  will  such  happiness  last?  Shall  we  not 
be  happier  as  our  crowns  accumulate,  to  ward 
off  sickness  and  hunger?  Must  I  teach  you 
economy  ?" 


116          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"I  shall  apply  for  work  to-morrow  and  waste 
no  more  crowns,  my  heart."  The  vintner's  hand 
again  sought  hers,  and  he  sent  Grumbach  a  look 
which  said :  "Smile  if  you  dare !" 

But  Grumbach  did  not  smile.  He  was  too  sad. 
He  fell  into  a  dream,  and  the  music  faded  in  his 
ear  and  the  lights  of  the  pavilion  grew  dim.  He 
was  a  boy  again,  and  he  was  carrying  posies  to 
the  pretty  little  fraulein  in  the  Adlergasse. 
Dreams  never  last,  and  sometimes  they  are 
rudely  interrupted. 

A  hand  was  put  upon  his  shoulder  authori 
tatively.  The  poh'ce  officer  who  had  examined 
his  passports  that  morning  stood  at  Grumbach's 
elbow. 

"Herr  Grumbach,"  he  said  quietly,  "his  ex 
cellency  the  chancellor  has  directed  me  to  bring 
you  at  once  to  the  palace." 

"To  the  palace?"  Grumbach's  face  was  ex 
pressive  of  great  astonishment.  The  officer  saw 
nothing  out  of  the  ordinary  in  this  expression. 
Any  foreigner  would  have  been  seized  with  con 
fusion  under  like  circumstances.  "To  the  pal 
ace?"  Grumbach  repeated.  "My  passports 
were  wrong  in  some  respect  ?" 


AN    ELDER    BROTHER     117 

"Oh,  no,  Herr;  they  were  correct." 

Grumbach  roused  his  mind  energetically.  He 
forced  down  the  fast  beating  of  his  heart,  ban 
ished  the  astonishment  from  his  face,  and  even 
brought  a  smile  to  his  lips. 

"But  whatever  can  the  chancellor  want  of 
me?" 

"That  is  not  my  business.  I  was  simply  sent 
to  find  you.  His  excellency  is  always  interested 
in  German- Americans.  It  may  be  that  he  wishes 
to  ask  what  the  future  is  there  in  America.  We 
have  more  in  Dreiberg  than  we  can  reasonably 
take  care  of." 

"In  the  prisons?" 

The  officer  laughed.     "There  and  elsewhere." 

"Is  that  right?"  asked  Grumbach,  now  thor 
oughly  on  guard. 

"It  may  not  be  right  to  ship  our  criminals 
over  there,  but  it  is  considered  very  good  poli 
tics." 

"Shall  we  go  at  once?  I  never  expected  to 
enter  the  palace  of  the  grand  duke  of  Ehren- 
stein,"  Grumbach  added.  "It  will  be  something 
to  tell  of  when  I  go  back  to  America." 

The  only  thing  that  reassured  him  was  the 


118          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

presence  of  one  officer.  When  they  came  for  a 
man  on  a  serious  charge,  in  Ehrenstein,  they 
came  in  pairs  or  fours.  So  then,  there  could  be 
pending  nothing  vital  to  his  liberty  or  his  in 
cognito.  Besides,  his  papers  were  all  right,  and 
now  there  would  be  Carmichael  to  fall  back  on. 

"The  palace  is  lighted  up,"  was  Grumbach's 
comment  as  the  two  passed  the  sentry  outside 
the  gates. 

"The  duke  gives  the  dinner  to  the  diplomatic 
corps  to-night." 

"A  fine  thing  to  be  a  diplomat." 

"I  myself  prefer  fighting  in  the  open.  Diplo 
mats?  Their  very  precious  hides  are  never 
anywhere  near  the  wars  they  bring  about.  No, 
no ;  this  way.  We  go  in  at  the  side." 

"You'll  have  to  guide  me.  Yes,  these  diplo 
mats.  Men  like  you  and  me  do  all  the  work.  I 
was  in  the  Civil  War  in  America." 

"That  was  a  great  fight,"  remarked  the  offi 
cer.  "I  should  like  to  have  been  there." 

"Four  years;  pretty  long.  Do  you  know 
Herr  Carmichael?" 

"The  American  consul?    Oh,  yes." 

"He  and  I  fought  in  the  same  regiment." 


AN    ELDER   BROTHER     119 

"Then  you  saw  some  pretty  battles." 
Grumbach  took  off  his  hat.    "See  that?" 
"Gott!     That  must  have  been  an  ugly  one." 
"Almost  crossed  over  when  I  got  it.     Is  this 

the  door?" 

"Yes.     I'll   put  you  in   snugly.     You   will 

probably  have  to  wait  for  his  excellency.     But 

you'll  have  me  for  company  till  he  appears." 
Grumbach  entered  the  palace  with  a  brave 

heart  and  a  steady  mind. 

The  grand  duke  had  a  warm  place  in  his  heart 
for  the  diplomatic  corps.  He  liked  to  see  them 
gathered  round  his  table,  fheir  uniforms  glitter 
ing  with  orders  and  decorations.  It  was  always 
a  night  of  wits ;  and  he  sprang  a  hundred  traps 
for  comedy's  sake,  but  these  astonishing  lin 
guists  seldom  if  ever  blundered  into  one  of  them. 
They  were  eternally  vigilant.  It  was  no  trifling 
matter  to  swing  the  thought  from  German  into 
French  or  Italian  or  Hungarian ;  but  they  were 
seasoned  veterans  in  the  game,  all  save  Car- 
michael,  who  spoke  only  French  and  German 
fluently.  The  duke,  however,  never  tried  need 
lessly  to  embarrass  him.  He  admired  Car- 


120          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

michael's  mental  agility.  Never  he  thrust  so 
keenly  that  the  American  was  found  lacking  in 
an  effective  though  simple  parry. 

"Your  highness  must  recollect  that  I  am  not 
familiar  with  that  tongue." 

"Pardon  me,  Herr  Captain !" 

But  there  was  always  a  twinkle  in  the  ducal 
eye  and  an  answering  smile  in  the  consul's. 

The  somber  black  of  Carmichael's  evening 
dress  stood  out  conspicuously  among  the  blue 
and  green  and  red  uniforms.  Etiquette  compelled 
him  to  wear  silk  stockings,  but  that  was  the 
single  concession  on  his  part.  He  wore  no 
orders.  An  order  of  the  third  or  fourth  class 
held  no  allurement.  Nothing  less  than  the 
Golden  Fleece  would  have  interested  him,  and 
the  grand  duke  himself  could  not  boast  of  this 
rare  and  distinguished  order.  In  truth,  Car- 
michael  coveted  nothing  but  a  medal  for  valor, 
and  his  own  country  had  not  yet  come  to  rec 
ognize  the  usefulness  of  such  a  distinction. 

All  round  him  sat  ministers  or  ambassadors ; 
he  alone  represented  a  consulate.  So  his  place 
at  the  table  was  honorary  rather  than  diplo 
matic.  It  was  his  lively  humorous  personality 


AN    ELDER    BROTHER 

the   grand   duke   admired,  not  his    representa 
tions. 

The  duke  sat  at  the  head  of  the  table  and  her 
serene  highness  at  the  foot;  and  it  was  by  the 
force  of  his  brilliant  wit  that  the  princess  did 
not  hold  in  perpetuity  the  court  at  her  end  of 
the  table.  For  a  German  princess  of  that  time 
she  was  highly  accomplished;  she  was  ardent, 
whimsical,  with  a  flashing  mentality  which 
rounded  out  and  perfected  her  physical  loveli 
ness.  Above  and  beyond  all  this,  she  had  suf 
fered,  she  had  felt  the  pangs  of  poverty,  the 
smart  of  unrecognized  merit;  she  had  been  one 
of  the  people,  and  her  sympathies  would  always 
be  with  them,  for  she  knew  what  those  about  her 
only  vaguely  knew,  the  patience,  the  unmur 
muring  bravery  of  the  poor.  Never  would  she 
become  sated  with  power  so  long  as  it  gave  her 
the  right  to  aid  the  people.  Never  a  new  tax 
was  levied  that  she  did  not  lighten  it  in  some 
manner;  never  an  oppressive  law  was  promul 
gated  that  she  did  not  soften  its  severity.  And 
so  the  populace  loved  her,  for  it  did  not  take 
the  people  long  to  find  out  what  she  was  trying 
to  do  for  them.  And  perhaps  they  loved  her 


THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

because  she  had  lived  the  greater  part  of  her 
young  life  as  one  of  them. 

To-night  there  was  love  in  the  duke's  eyes  as 
he  looked  down  the  table's  length;  there  was 
love  in  the  old  chancellor's  eyes,  too;  and  in 
Carmichael's.  And  there  was  love  in  her  eyes 
as  she  gazed  back  at  the  two  old  men.  But  who 
could  read  her  eyes  whenever  they  roved  in 
Carmichael's  direction?  Not  even  Gretchen's 
grandmother,  who  lived  in  the  Krumerweg. 

"Gentlemen,"  said  the  duke,  rising  and  hold 
ing  up  his  glass,  "this  night  I  give  you  a  toast 
which  I  believe  will  be  agreeable  to  all  of  you, 
especially  to  his  excellency,  Baron  von  Steinbock 
of  Jugendheit.  What  is  past  is  past;  a  new 
regime  begins  this  night."  He  paused.  All 
eyes  were  focused  upon  him  in  wonder.  Only 
Baron  von  Steinbock  displayed  no  more  than 
ordinary  interest.  "I  give  you,"  resumed  the 
duke,  "her  serene  highness  and  his  majesty, 
Frederick  of  Jugendheit!" 

The  princess  grew  delicately  pale  as  the  men 
and  women  sprang  to  their  feet.  Every  hand 
swept  toward  her,  holding  a  glass.  She  had 
surrendered  that  morning.  Not  because  she 


AN    ELDER    BROTHER 

wished  to  be  a  queen,  not  because  she  cared  to 
bring  about  an  alliance  between  the  two  coun 
tries  ;  no,  it  was  because  she  was  afraid  and  had 
burned  the  bridge  behind  her. 

The  tan  thinned  on  Carmichael's  face,  but  his 
hand  was  steady.  Never  would  he  forget  the 
tableau.  She  sat  still  in  her  chair,  her  lids 
drooped,  but  a  proud  lift  to  her  chin.  The  collar 
of  pearls  round  her  neck  had  scarce  more  luster 
than  her  shoulders.  How  red  her  lips  seemed 
against  the  whiteness  of  her  skin!  Beautiful 
to  him  beyond  all  dreams  of  beauty.  God  send 
another  war  and  let  him  die  in  the  heart  of  it, 
fighting!  To  dream  lies  as  he  had  done  this 
twelvemonth,  to  break  his  heart  over  the  moon! 
He  sat  his  glass  down  untouched,  happily  unob 
served.  He  was  in  misery;  he  wanted  to  be 
alone. 

"Long  live  her  majesty!"  thundered  the  chan 
cellor.  He,  too,  was  pale,  but  the  fire  of  great 
things  burned  in  his  eyes  and  his  lank  form 
took  upon  itself  a  transient  majesty. 

In  the  ball-room  the  princess  was  surrounded ; 
everybody  flattered  her;  congratulated  her, 
and  complimented  her.  All  agreed  that  it  was 


124          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

a  great  political  stroke.  And  indeed  it  was,  but 
none  of  them  knew  how  great. 

Carmichael  was  among  the  last  to  approach 
her.  By  this  time  he  had  his  voice  and  nerves 
under  control.  Without  apparent  volition  they 
walked  down  the  stairs  which  led  to  the  con 
servatory. 

"I  thought  perhaps  you  had  forgotten  me," 
she  said. 

"Forget  your  highness?  Do  not  give  me 
credit  for  such  an  impossibility."  He  bowed 
over  her  hand  and  brushed  it  with  his  lips,  for 
she  was  almost  royal  now.  "Your  highness  will 
be  happy.  It  is  written."  He  stepped  back 
slowly. 

"Have  you  the  gift  of  prescience?" 

"In  this  instance.  You  will  be  a  great  queen." 

"Who  knows?"  dreamily.  "When  I  recall 
what  I  have  gone  through,  all  this  seems  like  an 
enchantment  out  of  a  fairy-book,  and  that  I  must 
soon  wake  up  in  my  garret  in  Dresden." 

If  only  it  might  be  an  enchantment!  he 
thought.  If  only  he  might  find  her  as  the  grim 
old  chancellor  had  found  her,  in  a  garret !  What  ? 
Dreaming  again  ?  He  shrugged. 


I    thought   you   had    forgotten   me,"    she   said.      Page    124. 


AN    ELDER    BROTHER     125 

"Why  did  you  do  that  ?"  she  asked  quickly. 

"I  do  not  understand." 

"You  shrugged." 

"I  beg  your  highness'  pardon !"  flushing.  "I 
was  not  conscious  of  such  rudeness." 

"That  is  not  answering  my  question." 

"I  beg  of  your  highness — " 

"My  highness  commands !"  But  her  voice  was 
gentle. 

"It  was  a  momentary  dream  I  had;  and  the 
thought  of  its  utter  impossibility  caused  me  to 
shrug.  I  assure  your  highness  that  it  was  a 
philosophical  shrug,  such  as  the  Stoics  were  wont 
to  indulge  in."  He  spoke  lightly.  Only  his  eyes 
were  serious. 

"And  this  dream;  was  there  not  a  woman  in 
it?" 

"Oh,  no ;  there  was  only  an  angel." 

She  knew  that  it  was  not  proper  to  question 
him  in  this  manner ;  but  neither  her  heart  nor  her 
mind  were  formal  to-night. 

"You  interest  me;  you  always  interest  me. 
You  have  seen  so  many  wonderful  things.  And 
now  it  is  angels." 

"Only  one,  your  Highness."  This  was  daring. 


126          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"But  perhaps  I  am  putting  my  foot  where  angels 
fear  to  tread,"  which  was  still  more  daring. 

"Angels  ought  not  to  be  afraid  of  anything." 
She  laughed;  there  was  a  pain  and  a  joy  in  the 
sound  of  it.  She  read  his  heart  as  one  might 
read  a  written  line. 

"Dreams  are  always  unfinished  things,"  he 
said,  getting  back  on  safer  ground. 

"What  is  she  like,  this  angel?"  forcing  him 
upon  dangerous  ground  again  wilfully. 

"Who  may  describe  an  angel  one  has  seen  only 
in  a  golden  dream  ?" 

"You  will  not  tell  me?" 

"I  dare  not !"  His  eyes  sought  hers  unflinch 
ingly.  This  moment  he  was  mad,  and  had  not 
the  chancellor  and  Baron  von  Steinbock  came  up, 
Heaven  only  knew  what  further  madness  would 
have  unbridled  his  tongue. 

"Your  Highness,"  began  the  benign  voice  of 
the  chancellor,  "the  baron  desires,  in  the  name  of 
his  august  master,  to  open  the  ball  with  you.  Be 
hold  my  fairy-wand,"  gaily.  "This  night  I  have 
made  you  a  queen." 

"Can  you  make  me  happy  also?"  said  she,  so 
low  that  only  the  chancellor  heard  her. 


AN    ELDER   BROTHER     127 

"I  shall  try.  Ah,  Herr  Captain,"  with  a 
friendly  jerk  of  his  head  toward  Carraichael; 
"will  you  do  me  the  honor  to  join  me  in  my  cab 
inet,  quarter  of  an  hour  hence  ?" 

"I  shall  be  there,  your  Excellency."  Carmi- 
chael  was  uneasy.  He  was  not  certain  how  much 
the  chancellor  had  heard. 

"A  little  diplomatic  business  in  which  I  shall 
need  your  assistance,"  supplemented  the  chan 
cellor. 

Carmichael,  instead  of  loitering  uselessly  in 
the  ball-room,  at  once  sought  the  chancellor's 
cabinet.  He  wanted  to  be  alone.  He  made 
known  his  business  to  the  chancellor's  valet  who 
admitted  him.  He  stopped  just  across  the 
threshold.  To  his  surprise  the  room  was  already 
tenanted.  Grumbach  and  a  police  officer ! 

"Why,  Grumbach,  what  are  you  doing  here  ?" 
cried  Carmichael. 

"Waiting  for  his  excellency.  We  have  been 
here  something  past  an  hour." 

"What's  the  trouble  ?"  Carmichael  inquired. 

"Your  excellency  knows  as  much  as  I  do,"  said 
the  officer,  who  was  in  fact  no  less  than  the  sub- 
chief  of  the  bureau. 


128          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"And  I  am  in  the  dark,  also,"  said  Grumbach, 
twirling  his  hat. 

Carmichael  walked  about,  studying  the  many 
curios.  Occasionally  Grumbach  wiped  his  fore 
head,  and,  absently,  the  inner  rim  of  his  hat. 
Perhaps  the  three  of  them  waited  twenty  min 
utes  ;  then  the  chancellor  came  in.  He  bowed 
cordially  and  drew  chairs  about  his  desk.  He 
placed  Grumbach  in  the  full  glare  of  the  lamp. 
Carmichael  and  the  sub-chief  were  in  the  half- 
light.  The  chancellor  was  last  to  seat  himself. 

"Herr  Grumbach,"  said  the  chancellor  in  a 
mild  tone,  "I  should  like  to  see  your  papers." 

"My  passports,  your  Excellency  ?" 

"Yes." 

Grumbach  laid  them  on  the  desk  imperturba- 
bly.  The  chancellor  struck  the  bell.  His  valet 
answered  immediately. 

"Send  Breunner,  the  head  gardener,  at  once." 

"He  is  in  the  anteroom,  Excellency." 

"Tell  him  to  come  in." 

The  chancellor  shot  a  piercing  glance  at 
Grumbach,  but  the  latter  was  studying  the  mural 
decorations. 

Carmichael  sat  tight  in  his  chair,  curious  to 


learn  what  it  was  all  about.  Breunner  entered. 
He  was  thin  and  partly  bald  and  quite  fifty. 

"Breunner,  her  highness  will  need  many  flow 
ers  to-morrow.  See  to  it  that  they  are  cut  in  the 
morning." 

"It  shall  be  done,  Excellency." 

The  chancellor  turned  to  the  passports. 

"There  is  only  one  question,  Herr  Grumbach. 
It  says  here  that  you  were  a  native  of  Bavaria 
before  going  to  America.  How  long  ago  did 
you  leave  Bavaria?" 

"A  good  many  years,  your  Excellency." 
Grumbach  inspected  the  label  in  his  hat. 

"You  have,  of  course,  retained  your  Bavarian 
passport?" 

Carmichael  was  now  leaning  forward  in  his 
chair,  deeply  interested.  He  saw  that  the  chan 
cellor  was  watching  Grumbach  as  a  cat  watches 
a  mouse-hole. 

Grumbach  brought  forth  a  bulky  wallet.  The 
edges  of  Bank  of  England  notes  could  be  seen, 
of  fat  denominations. 

"Here  it  is,  your  Excellency ;  a  little  ragged, 
but  readable  still." 

The  chancellor  went  over  it  carefully. 


130          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"Herr  Captain, do  you  know  this  compatriot?" 

"We  fought  side  by  side  in  the  American  war. 
I  saw  no  irregularity  in  his  papers.  I  am  rather 
astonished  to  see  him  here  and  not  at  the  police 
bureau,  if  any  question  has  arisen  over  his  pass 
ports." 

"Fought  side  by  side,"  the  chancellor  repeated 
thoughtfully.  "Then  he  is  no  stranger  to  you  ?" 

"I  do  not  say  that.  We  were,  however,  in  the 
same  cavalry,  only  in  different  troops.  Grum 
bach,  you  have  your  honorable  discharge  with 
you?" 

Grumbach  went  into  his  wallet  still  again. 
This  document  the  chancellor  read  with  an  inter 
est  foreign  to  the  affair  under  his  hand.  Pres 
ently  he  laughed  softly.  Why,  he  could  not 
readily  have  told. 

"I  am  sorry,  Herr  Grumbach.  All  this  un 
necessary  trouble  simply  because  of  the  word  Ba 
varia." 

"No  trouble  at  all,  your  Excellency,"  restor 
ing  his  papers.  "I  have  seen  the  inside  of  a  real 
palace,  and  I  never  expected  such  an  honor." 

"How  long  will  you  be  making  your  visit?" 


AN    ELDER    BROTHER     131 

"Only  a  few  days,  your  Excellency.  Then  I 
shall  proceed  to  Bavaria." 

"Your  excellency  has  no  further  orders  ?"  said 
the  head  gardener  patiently. 

"Good  Heaven,  Breunner,  I  had  forgotten  all 
about  you !  There  is  nothing  more.  Gentlemen, 
your  pardon  for  having  detained  you  so  long. 
Herr  Captain,  you  will  return  with  me  to  the 
ball-room  ?" 

"If  your  excellency  will  excuse  me,  no.  I  am 
tired.  I  shall  return  to  the  hotel  with  Herr 
Grumbach." 

"As  you  please.    Good  night." 

The  three  left  the  cabinet  under  various  emo 
tions.  The  sub-chief  bowed  himself  off  at  the 
gates,  and  Carmichael  and  Grumbach  crossed 
the  Platz  leisurely. 

"How  did  you  come  by  that  Bavarian  pass 
port?"  asked  Carmichael  abruptly. 

"It  is  a  forgery,  my  friend,  but  his  excellency 
will  never  find  that  out." 

"You  have  me  all  at  sea.  Why  did  he  bring 
in  the  head  gardener  and  leave  him  standing 
there  all  that  while?" 


132          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"He  had  a  sound  purpose,  but  it  fell.     The 
head  gardener  did  not  recognize  me." 
"Do  you  know  him?" 
"Yes.    He  is  my  elder  brother." 


CHAPTER    VIII 

THE    KING'S    LETTER 

THE  ambassador  from  Jugendheit,  Baron 
von  Steinbock,  was  not  popular  in  Drel- 
berg,  at  least  not  among  the  people,  who  still  held 
to  the  grand  duke's  idea  that  the  kingdom  had 
been  behind  the  abduction  of  the  Princess  Hilde- 
garde.  The  citizens  scowled  at  his  carriage,  they 
scowled  at  the  mention  of  his  name,  they  scowled 
whenever  they  passed  the  embassy,  which  stood 
in  the  heart  of  the  fashionable  residences  in  the 
Konig  Strasse.  Never  a  hot-headed  Dreiberger 
passed  the  house  without  a  desire  to  loot  it,  to 
scale  the  piked  fence  and  batter  in  the  doors  and 
windows.  Steinbock  himself  was  a  polished,  ami 
able  gentleman,  in  no  wise  meriting  this  ill-feel 
ing.  The  embassy  was  in  all  manner  the  most 
important  in  Dreiberg,  though  Prussia  and  Aus 
tria  overshadowed  it  in  wealth  and  prestige. 
133 


134          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

At  this  moment  the  people  gazed  at  the  house 
less  in  rancor  than  in  astonishment.  The  king 
of  Jugendheit  was  to  marry  her  serene  highness  ! 
It  was  a  bad  business,  a  bad  business ;  no  good 
would  come  of  it.  The  great  duke  was  a  weak 
man,  after  all. 

The  menials  in  and  about  the  embassy  felt  the 
new  importance  of  their  positions.  So  then,  im 
agine  the  indignation  of  the  majordomo,  when, 
summoned  at  dusk  one  evening  to  the  carriage 
gates,  three  or  four  days  after  the  portentous 
news  had  issued  from  the  palace,  he  found  only 
a  ragged  and  grimy  carter  who  demanded  per 
emptorily  to  be  admitted  and  taken  to  his  excel 
lency  at  once. 

"Be  off  with  you,  ragamuffin!"  growled  the 
majordomo. 

"Be  quick ;  open  the  gates !"  replied  the  car 
ter,  swinging  his  whip  threateningly. 

"Go  away!"  The  majordomo  spun  on  his 
heels  contemptuously. 

"I  will  skin  you  alive,"  vowed  the  carter,  strik 
ing  the  iron  with  the  butt  of  his  whip,  "if  you  do 
not  open  these  gates  immediately.  Open !" 

There  was  real  menace  this  time.     Could  the 


THE    KING'S    LETTER     135 

fellow  be  crazy?  The  majordomo  concluded  to 
temporize. 

"My  good  man,"  he  said  conciliatorily,  "you 
have  brains.  You  ought  to  know  that  his  excel 
lency  will  receive  no  man  in  your  condition.  If 
you  do  not  stop  hammering  on  those  bars,  I  shall 
send  for  the  police." 

The  carter  thrust  a  hand  through  the  grill. 
There  was  a  ring  on  one  of  his  fingers. 

"Imbecile,  set  your  eye  on  that  and  admit  me 
without  more  ado !" 

The  majordomo  was  thunderstruck.  Indeed,  a 
blast  from  the  heavens  would  have  jarred  him 
less. 

"Open,  then!" 

The  majordomo  threw  back  the  bolts  and  the 
carter  pushed  his  way  in.  That  ring  on  the 
carter's  finger?  The  majordomo  felt  himself 
slipping  into  a  fantastic  dream. 

"Take  me  to  the  baron." 

Vastly  subdued  the  majordomo  preceded  the 
carter  into  the  office  of  the  embassy.  There  he 
left  the  strange  guest  and  went  in  search  of  the 
baron.  The  ambassador  was  in  his  study,  read 
ing. 


136          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"Your  Excellency,  there  is  a  man  in  the  office 
who  desires  to  see  you  quickly." 

The  ambassador  laid  down  his  book.  "Upon 
what  pretense  did  he  gain  admittance  at  this 
hour?"  he  demanded. 

"I  refused  him  admittance,  your  Excellency, 
because  he  was  dressed  like  a  carter — " 

"A  carter!"  The  ambassador  wrathfully 
jumped  to  his  feet. 

"One  moment,  your  Excellency.  He  wore  a 
ring  on  his  finger,  and  I  could  not  refuse  him." 

"A  ring,  you  say  ?" 

Guarding  his  voice  with  his  hand,  the  major- 
domo  whispered  two  words. 

"Here,  and  dressed  like  a  carter?  What  the 
devil !"  The  ambassador  rushed  from  the  study. 

It  was  dark  in  the  embassy  office.  Quickly  the 
ambassador  lighted  some  candles.  Gas  would  be 
too  bright  for  such  a  meeting. 

"Well,  your  Excellency?"  said  a  voice  from 
the  leather  lounge. 

"Who  are  you?"  For  this  was  not  the  voice 
the  baron  expected  to  hear. 

"My  name  at  present  does  not  matter.  The 
news  I  bring  is  far  more  important.  His  majesty 


THE    KING'S    LETTER     137 

emphatically  declines  any  alliance  with  the  House 
of  Ehrenstein." 

The  ambassador  stumbled  into  a  chair,  his 
mind  dulled,  his  shoulders  inert.  This  was  a 
blow. 

"Declines  ?"  he  murmured. 

"He  repudiates  his  uncle's  negotiations  abso 
lutely." 

"Damnation!"  swore  the  ambassador,  coming 
to  life  once  more. 

"The  exact  word  used  by  the  prince ;  in  fact, 
the  word  has  become  common  property  in  the  last 
forty-eight  hours.  Now  then,  what's  to  be  done? 
What  do  you  suggest?" 

"This  means  war.  The  duke  will  never  swal 
low  such  an  insult." 

"War !  It  looks  as  if  you  and  I,  Baron,  shall 
not  accompany  the  king  of  Prussia  into  Alsace- 
Lorraine.  We  shall  have  entertainment  at  home." 

"This  is  horrible!" 

"The  devil  of  a  muddle!" 

"But  what  possessed  the  prince  to  blunder  like 
this?" 

"The  prince  really  is  not  to  blame.  Our  king, 
Baron,  is  a  young  colt.  A  few  months  ago  he 


138          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

gave  his  royal  uncle  carte  blanche  to  seek  a  wife 
for  him.  Politics  demanded  an  alliance  between 
Jugendheit  and  Ehrenstein.  There  have  been 
too  many  years  of  useless  antagonism.  On  the 
head  of  this  bolt  from  Heaven  comes  the  declara 
tion  of  his  majesty  that  he  will  marry  any  other 
princess  on  the  continent." 

"They  will  pull  this  place  down,  brick  by 
brick!" 

"Let  them!  We  have  ten  thousand  more 
troops  than  Ehrenstein." 

"You  young  men  are  a  pack  of  fools  !" 

"Softly,  Baron." 

"You  would  like  nothing  better  than  war." 

"Unless  it  is  peace." 

"Where  is  the  king?" 

The  carter  smiled.  "He  is  hunting,  they  say, 
with  the  crown  prince  of  Bavaria." 

"But  you,  why  have  you  come  dressed  like 
this?" 

"That  is  a  little  secret  which  I  am  not  at  lib 
erty  to  disclose." 

"But,  great  God,  what's  to  be  done?" 

"Lie,"  urbanely. 

"What  good  will  lies  do?" 


THE    KING'S    LETTER     139 

"They  will  suspend  the  catastrophe  till  we  are 
ready  to  meet  it.  The  marriage  is  not  to  take 
place  till  spring.  That  will  give  us  plenty  of 
time.  After  the  coronation  his  majesty  may  be 
brought  to  reason.  This  marriage  must  not  fall 
through  now.  The  grand  duke  will  not  care  to 
become  the  laughing-stock  of  Europe.  The 
prince's  advice  is  for  you  to  go  about  your  af 
fairs  as  usual.  Only  one  man  must  be  taken  into 
your  confidence,  and  that  man  is  Herbeck.  If 
any  one  can  straighten  out  his  end  of  the  tangle 
it  is  he.  He  is  a  big  man,  of  fertile  invention ; 
he  will  understand.  If  this  thing  falls  through 
his  honors  will  fall  with  it.  He  will  work  toward 
peace,  though  from  what  I  have  learned  the  duke 
would  not  shun  war." 

"Where  is  the  prince?" 

"Wherever  he  is,  he  is  working  for  the  best 
interests  of  the  state.  Don't  worry  about  his 
royal  highness ;  he's  a  man." 

"When  did  you  come  ?" 

"This  morning.  Though  I  have  been  here 
before  in  this  same  guise." 

"There  is  the  Bavarian  princess,"  remarked 
the  ambassador  musingly. 


140          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"Ha!  A  good  thought!  But  the  king  is  ro 
mantic  ;  she  is  older  than  he,  and  ugly." 

"You  are  not  telling  me  everything,"  intui 
tively. 

"I  know  it.  I  am  telling  you  all  that  is  at 
present  necessary." 

"You  make  me  the  unhappiest  man  in  the 
kingdom !  I  have  worked  so  hard  and  long  to 
ward  this  end.  When  did  the  king  decline  this 
alliance  ?" 

"Evidently  the  moment  he  heard  of  it.  I  have 
his  letter  in  my  pocket.  I  am  requested  to  read 
it  to  you.  Listen : 

"  'MY  ILLUSTRIOUS  AND  INDUSTRIOUS  UNCLE  : 
I  regret  exceedingly  that  at  this  late  day  I 
should  cause  you  political  embarrassment;  but 
when  I  gave  my  consent  to  the  espousal  of  any  of 
the  various  princesses  at  liberty,  surely  it  was 
understood  that  Ehrenstein  was  not  to  be  consid 
ered.  I  refuse  to  marry  the  daughter  of  the 
man  who  privately  strove  to  cover  my  father 
with  contumely,  who  dared  impute  to  him  a  crime 
that  was  any  man's  but  my  father's.  I  realize 
that  certain  policies  called  for  this  stroke  on 
your  part,  but  it  can  not  be.  My  dear  uncle,  you 
have  digged  a  fine  pit,  and  I  hope  you  will  find 


THE    KING'S    LETTER     141 

a  safe  way  out  of  it.  I  refuse  to  marry  the  Prin 
cess  Hildegarde.  This  is  final.  It  can  be  ar 
ranged  without  any  discredit  to  the  duke  or  to 
yourself.  Let  it  be  said  that  her  serene  highness 
has  thrown  me  over.  I  shan't  go  to  war  about  it. 

FREDERICK.'  ' 

"Observe  'My  illustrious  and  industrious  un 
cle'  !"  laughed  the  carter  without  mirth.  "Our 
king,  you  will  see,  has  a  graceful  style." 

"Your  tone  is  not  respectful,"  warned  the  am 
bassador. 

"Neither  is  the  state  of  my  mind.  Oh,  my  king 
is  a  fine  fellow ;  he  will  settle  down  like  his  father 
before  him ;  but  to-day — "  The  carter  dropped 
his  arms  dejectedly. 

"There  is  something  going  on." 

"What,  you  are  likely  to  learn  at  any  moment. 
Pardon  me,  Baron,  but  if  I  dared  I  would  tell  you 
all.  But  his  highness'  commands  are  over  me 
and  I  must  obey  them.  It  would  be  a  mental  re 
lief  to  tell  some  one." 

"Curse  these  opera-dancers !" 

The  carter  laughed.  "Aye,  where  kings  are 
concerned.  But  you  do  him  injustice.  Freder 
ick  is  as  mild  as  Strephon."  He  gained  his  feet. 


THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

He  was  young,  pleasant  of  face,  but  a  thorough 
soldier. 

"You  are  Lieutenant  von  Radenstein!"  cried 
the  ambassador.  "I  recognize  you  now." 

"Thanks,  your  Excellency !" 

"You  are  in  the  royal  household,  the  regent's 
invisible  arm.  I  have  heard  a  good  deal  about 
you.  I  knew  your  father  well." 

"Again,  thanks.  Now,  the  regent  has  heard 
certain  rumors  regarding  an  American  named 
Carmichael,  a  consul.  He  is  often  seen  with  her 
highness.  Rather  an  extraordinary  privilege." 

"Rest  your  mind  there,  Lieutenant.  This  Car 
michael  is  harmless.  You  understand,  her  high 
ness  has  not  always  been  surrounded  by  royal  eti 
quette.  She  has  had  her  freedom  too  long  not  to 
grow  restive  under  restraint.  The  American  is  a 
pleasant  fellow,  but  not  worth  considering. 
Americans  will  never  understand  the  ways  of 
court  life.  Still,  he  is  a  gentleman,  and  so  far 
there  is  nothing  compromising  in  that  situation. 
He  can  be  eliminated  at  any  time." 

"This  is  reassuring.  You  will  see  the  chan 
cellor  to-night  and  show  him  this  letter  ?" 


THE    KING'S    LETTER     143 

"I  will,  and  God  help  us  all  to  straighten  out 
this  blunder !" 

"Amen  to  that !  One  word  more,  and  then  I'm 
off.  If  a  butcher  or  a  baker,  or  even  a  moun 
taineer  pulls  the  bell-cord  and  shows  this  ring, 
admit  him  without  fail.  He  will  have  vital  news. 
And  now,  good  night  and  good  luck  to  your  ex 
cellency." 

For  half  an  hour  the  ambassador  remained 
staring  at  the  candlesticks.  By  and  by  he  re 
sumed  his  chair.  What  should  he  do?  Where 
should  he  begin?  Suppose  the  chancellor 
should  look  at  the  situation  adversely,  from  the 
duke's  angle  of  vision,  should  the  duke  learn? 
There  was  but  one  thing  to  do  and  that  was  to 
go  boldly  to  Herbeck  and  lay  the  matter  before 
him  frankly.  Neither  Jugendheit  nor  Ehren- 
stein  wanted  war.  The  chancellor  was  wise;  it 
would  be  better  to  dally  with  the  truth  than  need 
lessly  to  sacrifice  ten  thousand  lives.  But  what 
had  the  lieutenant  further  to  conceal?  The  am 
bassador  wanted  no  dinner.  He  rang  for  his  hat 
and  coat,  and  twenty  minutes  later  he  was  in  the 
chancellor's  cabinet. 


144          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"You  seem  out  of  health,  Baron,"  was  the 
chancellor's  greeting. 

"I  am  indeed  that,  Count.  I  received  a  letter 
to-day  from  the  prince  regent.  It  was  sent  to 
him  by  his  majesty,  who  is  hunting  in  Bavaria. 
Read  it,  Count,  but  I  pray  to  you  to  do  nothing 
hastily." 

The  chancellor  did  not  open  the  letter,  he 
merely  balanced  it.  That  so  light  a  thing  should 
be  so  heavy  with  dark  portents!  His  accus 
tomed  pallor  assumed  a  grayish  tinge. 

"So  his  majesty  declines?"  he  said  evenly. 

"You  have  already  heard?"  cried  the  amazed 
ambassador. 

"Nothing ;  I  surmise.  The  hour,  your  appear 
ance,  the  letter — to  what  else  could  they  point? 
I  was  afraid  all  along.  Strange  instinct  we  have 
at  times.  The  regent  is  to  be  pitied;  he  took 
too  much  for  granted.  He  has  been  used  to 
power  one  day  too  long.  Ah,  if  his  majesty 
could  but  see  her,  could  only  know  how  lovely 
she  is  in  heart  and  mind  and  face!  Is  she  not 
worthy  a  crown  ?" 

"Herbeck,  nothing  would  please  me  better, 
nothing  would  afford  my  country  greater  pleas- 


THE    KING'S    LETTER     145 

ure  and  satisfaction,  than  to  see  this  marriage 
consummated.  It  would  nail  that  baseless  lie 
which  has  so  long  been  current." 

"I  believe  you.  We  two  peoples  should  be 
friendly.  It  has  taken  me  months  to  bring  this 
matter  round.  The  duke  rebelled;  her  highness 
scorned  the  hand  of  Frederick.  One  by  one  I 
had  to  overcome  their  objections — to  this  end. 
The  past  refuses  to  be  buried.  Still,  if  you  saw 
all  the  evidence  in  the  case  you  would  not  blame 
the  duke  for  his  attitude." 

"But  those  documents  are  rank  forgeries !" 

"So  they  may  be,  but  that  has  not  been 
proved." 

"Why  should  his  late  majesty  abduct  the 
daughter  of  the  grand  duke?  For  what  benefits? 
To  what  end?  Ah,  Count,  if  some  motive  could 
be  brought  forward,  some  motive  that  could 
stand !" 

"Motives,  my  friend?  They  spring  from  the 
most  unheard-of  places.  And  motives  in  action 
are  always  based  on  impulses.  But  let  us  waste 
no  time  on  retrospection.  It  is  the  present  which 
confronts  us.  You  do  not  want  war." 

"No  more  do  you." 


146          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"What  remedy  do  you  suggest?" 

"I  ask,  nay,  I  plead  that  question  of  you." 

"I  represent  the  offended  party."  The  chan 
cellor's  gaunt  features  lighted  with  a  transient 
smile.  "Proceed,  Baron." 

"I  suggest,  then,  that  the  duke  must  not 
know." 

"Agreed.    Go  on." 

"You  will  put  the  matter  before  her  highness." 

"That  will  be  difficult." 

"Let  her  repudiate  the  negotiations.  Let  her 
say  that  she  has  changed  her  mind.  His  majesty 
is  quite  willing  that  the  humiliation  be  his." 

"That  is  generous.  But  suppose  she  has  set 
her  heart  on  the  crown  of  Jugendheit?  What 
then?" 

The  baron  bit  the  ends  of  his  mustache. 

"Suppose  that  ?"  the  chancellor  pressed  relent 
lessly. 

"In  that  event,  the  affair  is  no  longer  in  our 
hands  but  in  God's." 

"As  all  affairs  are.  Is  there  no  way  of  chang 
ing  the  king's  mind?" 

"Read  the  letter,  Count,"  said  the  ambassador. 

Herbeck  hunted  for  the  postmark:  Bavaria. 


THE    KING'S    LETTER     147 

He  read  the  letter.  There  was  nothing  between 
the  lines.  It  was  the  work  of  rather  an  irrespon 
sible  boy. 

"May  I  take  this  to  her  highness?"  asked  the 
chancellor. 

"I'm  afraid—" 

"I  promise  its  contents  will  not  go  beyond  her 
eye." 

"I  will  take  the  risk." 

"His  majesty  is  very  young,"  was  the  chan 
cellor's  comment. 

"Young!  He  is  a  child.  He  has  been  in  his 
palace  twice  in  ten  years.  He  is  travel-mad.  He 
has  been  wandering  in  France,  Holland,  Eng 
land,  Belgium.  He  tells  his  uncle  to  play  the 
king  till  the  coronation.  Imagine  it!  And  the 
prince  has  found  this  authority  so  pleasant  and 
natural  that  he  took  it  for  granted  that  his 
majesty  would  marry  whomever  he  selected  for 
him.  To  have  allowed  us  to  go  forward,  as  we 
have  done,  believing  that  he  had  the  whole  confi 
dence  of  the  king !" 

Herbeck  consulted  his  watch.  It  was  Half 
after  six.  Her  highness  did  not  dine  till  eight. 

"I    shall    go    to    her    highness    immediately, 


148          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

Baron.  I  shall  return  the  letter  by  messenger, 
and  he  will  tell  you  the  result  of  the  interview." 

"God  be  with  you,"  said  the  ambassador,  pre 
paring  to  take  his  leave,  "for  all  women  are  con 
trary." 

After  the  baron  was  gone  the  chancellor  paced 
the  room  with  halting  step.  Then,  toward  the 
wraith  of  his  ambition  he  waved  a  hand  as  if  to 
explain  how  futile  are  the  schemes  of  men.  He 
shook  himself  free  from  this  idle  moment  and 
proceeded  to  the  apartments  of  her  highness. 
Would  she  toss  aside  this  crown,  or  would  she 
fight  for  it?  He  found  her  alone. 

"Well,  my  good  fairy,  what  is  in  your  magic 
wand  to-night?"  she  asked.  How  fond  she  was 
of  this  great  good  man,  and  how  lonely  he  always 
seemed ! 

He  saluted  her  hand  respectfully.  "I  am  not 
a  good  fairy  to-night,  your  Highness.  On  the 
contrary,  I  am  an  ogre.  I  have  here  a  letter.  I 
have  given  my  word  that  its  contents  shall  not 
be  repeated  to  the  duke,  your  father.  If  I  let  you 
read  it,  will  you  agree  to  that  ?" 

"And  who  has  written  this  letter?"  non-com- 
mittally. 


THE    KING'S    LETTER     149 

"His  majesty,  the  king  of  Jugendheit," 
slowly. 

"A  letter  from  the  king?"  she  cried,  curious. 
"Should  it  not  be  brought  to  me  on  a  golden  sal 
ver?" 

"It  is  probable  that  I  am  bringing  it  to  you  at 
the  end — of  a  bayonet,"  solemnly.  "If  the  duke 
learns  its  contents  the  inevitable  result  will  be 
war." 

A  silence  fell  upon  them  and  grew.  This  was 
the  bitterest  moment  but  one  in  the  chancellor's 
life. 

"I  believe,"  she  said  finally,  "that  it  will  not  be 
necessary  to  read  his  majesty's  letter.  He  de 
clines  the  honor  of  my  hand:  is  that  not  it?" 

The  chancellor  signified  that  it  was. 

"Ah !"  with  a  note  of  pride  in  her  voice  and  a 
flash  in  her  eyes.  "And  I?" 

"You  will  tell  the  duke  that  you  have  changed 
your  mind,"  gravely. 

"Do  princesses  change  their  minds  like  this?" 

"They  have  often  done  so." 

"In  spite  of  publicity?" 

"Yes,  your  Highness." 

"And  if  I  refuse  to  change  my  mind?" 


150          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"I  am  resigned  to  any  and  all  events." 

"War."  Her  face  was  serious.  "And  what 
has  the  king  to  suggest?" 

"He  proposes  to  accept  the  humiliation  of  be 
ing  rejected  by  you." 

"Why,  this  is  a  gallant  king !  Pouff !  There 
goes  a  crown  of  thistledown."  She  smiled  at  the 
chancellor,  then  she  laughed.  There  was  nothing 
but  youth  in  the  laughter,  youth  and  gladness. 
"Oh,  I  knew  that  you  were  a  good  fairy.  Listen 
to  me.  I  declare  to  you  that  I  am  happier  at  this 
moment  than  I  have  been  in  days.  To  marry  a 
man  I  have  never  seen,  to  become  the  wife  of  a 
man  who  is  nothing  to  me,  whose  looks,  charac 
ter,  and  habits  are  unknown ;  why,  I  have  lived 
in  a  kind  of  horror.  You  did  not  find  me  soon 
enough;  there  are  yet  some  popular  ideas  in  my 
head  which  are  alien  to  the  minds  of  princesses. 
I  am  free !"  And  she  uttered  the  words  as  with 
the  breath  of  spring. 

The  chancellor's  shoulders  drooped  a  trifle 
more,  and  his  hand  closed  down  over  the  letter. 
Otherwise  there  was  no  notable  change  in  his  ap 
pearance.  He  was  always  guarding  the  muscles 
of  his  face.  Inscrutability  is  the  first  lesson  of 


THE    KING'S    LETTER     151 

the  diplomat ;  and  he  had  learned  it  thirty  years 
before. 

"There  will  be  no  war,"  resumed  her  highness. 
"I  know  my  father ;  our  wills  may  clash,  but  in 
this  instance  mine  shall  be  the  stronger." 

"But  this  is  not  the  end." 

"You  mean  that  there  will  be  other  kings?" 
She  had  not  thought  of  this,  and  some  of  the 
brightness  vanished  from  her  face. 

"Yes,  there  will  be  other  kings.  I  am  sorry. 
What  young  girl  has  not  her  dream  of  romance  ? 
But  princesses  must  not  have  romances.  Yours, 
my  child,  must  be  a  political  marriage.  It  is  a 
harsh  decree." 

"Have  not  princesses  married  commoners?" 

"Never  wisely.  Your  highness  will  not  make 
a  mistake  like  that." 

"My  highness  will  or  will  not  marry,  as  she 
pleases.  Am  I  a  chattel,  that  I  am  to  be  offered 
across  this  frontier  or  that?" 

The  chancellor  moved  uneasily.  "If  your 
highness  loved  out  of  your  class,  which  I  know 
you  do  not,  I  should  be  worried." 

"And  if  I  did?"  with  a  rebel  tilt  to  her  chin. 

"Till  that  moment  arrives  I  shall  not  borrow 


152          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

trouble.  You  will,  then,  tell  the  duke  that  you 
have  changed  your  mind,  that  you  have  recon 
sidered?" 

"This  evening.  Now,  godfather,  you  may  kiss 
her  serene  highness  on  the  forehead." 

"This  honor  to  me?"  The  chancellor  trem 
bled. 

"Even  so." 

He  did  not.  touch  her  with  his  hands,  but  the 
kiss  he  put  on  her  forehead  was  a  benediction. 

"You  may  go  now,"  she  said,  "for  I  shall  need 
the  whole  room  to  dance  in.  I  am  free,  if  only 
for  a  little  while !" 

Outside  the  door  the  chancellor  paused.  She 
was  singing.  It  was  the  same  aria  he  had  heard 
that  memorable  night  when  he  found  her  in  the 
dim  garret. 


CHAPTER   IX 

GRETCHEN'S  DAY 

GRETCHEN  was  always  up  when  the 
morning  was  rosy,  when  the  trees  were 
still  dark  and  motionless,  and  the  beads  of  dew 
white  and  f  rostlike.  For  what  is  better  than  to 
meet  the  day  as  it  comes  over  the  mountains,  and 
silence  breaks  here  and  there,  in  the  houses  and 
streets,  in  the  fields  and  the  vineyards?  Let  old 
age,  which  has  played  its  part  and  taken  to  the 
wings  of  the  stage,  let  old  age  loiter  in  the  morn 
ing,  but  not  green  years.  Gretchen  awoke  as  the 
birds  awoke,  with  snatches  and  little  trills  of 
song.  To  her  nearest  neighbors  there  was  about 
her  that  which  reminded  them  of  the  regularity 
of  a  good  clock ;  when  they  heard  her  voice  they 
knew  it  was  time  to  get  up. 

She  was  always  busy  in  the  morning.  The  tin 
kle  of  the  bell  outside  brought  her  to  the  door, 
and  her  two  goats  came  pattering  in  to  be  re- 
153 


154          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

lieved  of  their  creamy  burden.  Gretchen  was 
fond  of  them ;  they  needed  no  care  at  all.  The 
moment  she  had  milked  them  they  went  tinkling 
off  to  the  steep  pastures. 

Even  in  midsummer  the  dawn  was  chill  in 
Dreiberg.  She  blew  on  her  fingers.  The  fire  was 
down  to  the  last  ember ;  so  she  went  into  the  clut 
tered  courtyard  and  broke  into  pieces  one  of  the 
limbs  she  had  carried  up  from  the  valley  earlier 
in  the  season.  The  fire  renewed  its  cheerful 
crackle,  the  kettle  boiled  briskly,  and  the  frugal 
breakfast  was  under  way. 

There  was  daily  one  cup  of  coffee,  but  neither 
Gretchen  nor  her  grandmother  claimed  this  lux 
ury  ;  it  was  for  the  sick  woman  on  the  third  floor. 
Sometimes  at  the  Black  Eagle  she  had  a  cup 
when  her  work  was  done,  but  to  Gretchen  the 
aroma  excelled  the  taste.  Her  grandmother's 
breakfast  and  her  own  out  of  the  way,  she  car 
ried  the  coffee  and  bread  and  a  hot  brick  up  to 
the  invalid.  The  woman  gave  her  two  crowns  a 
week  to  serve  this  morning  meal.  Gretchen  would 
have  cheerfully  done  the  work  for  nothing. 

What  the  character  of  the  woman's  illness  was 
Gretchen  hadn't  an  idea,  but  there  could  be  no 


GRETCHEN'S    DAY         155 

doubt  that  she  was  ill,  desperately,  had  the  goose- 
girl  but  known  it.  Her  face  was  thin  and  the 
bones  were  visible  under  the  drum-like  skin ;  her 
hands  were  merely  claws.  But  she  would  have 
no  doctor;  she  would  have  no  care  save  that 
which  Gretchen  gave  her.  Sometimes  she  re 
mained  in  bed  all  the  day.  She  had  been  out  of 
the  house  but  once  since  she  came.  She  mysti 
fied  the  girl,  for  she  never  complained,  never 
asked  questions,  talked  but  little,  and  always 
smiled  kindly  when  the  pillow  was  freshened. 

"Good  morning,  Frau,"  said  Gretchen. 

"Good  morning,  Liebchen." 

"I  have  brought  you  a  brick  this  morning,  for 
it  will  be  cold  till  the  sun  is  high." 

"Thank  you." 

Gretchen  pulled  the  deal  table  to  the  side  of 
the  cot,  poured  out  the  coffee,  and  buttered  the 
bread. 

"I  ought  not  to  drink  coffee,  but  it  is  the  only 
thing  that  warms  me.  You  have  been  very  pa 
tient  with  me." 

"I  am  glad  to  help  you." 

"And  that  is  why  I  love  you.  Now,  I  have  some 
instructions  to  give  you  this  morning.  Presently^ 


156          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

I  shall  be  leaving,  and  there  will  be  something 
besides  crowns." 

"You  are  thinking  of  leaving?" 

"Yes.  When  I  go  I  shall  not  come  back.  Un 
der  my  pillow  there  is  an  envelope.  You  will 
find  it  and  keep  it." 

Gretchen,  young  and  healthy,  touched  not  this 
melancholy  undercurrent.  She  accepted  the 
words  at  their  surface  value.  She  knew  nothing 
about  death  except  by  hearsay. 

"You  will  promise  to  take  it?" 

"Yes,  Frau." 

"Thanks,  little  gosling.  I  have  an  errand  for 
you  this  morning.  It  will  take  you  to  the  pal 
ace." 

"To  the  palace  ?"  echoed  Gretchen. 

"Yes.    Does  that  frighten  you?" 

"No,  Frau ;  it  only  surprises  me.  What  shall 
I  do?" 

"You  will  seek  her  highness  and  give  her  this 
note." 

"The  princess?"  Gretchen  sadly  viewed  her 
wooden  shoes  and  roughened  hands. 

"Never  mind  your  hands  and  feet;  your  face 
will  open  any  gate  or  door  for  you.'* 


GRETCHEN'S    DAY         157 

"I  have  never  been  to  the  palace.  Will  they 
not  laugh  and  turn  me  out?" 

"If  they  try  that,  demand  to  see  his  excel 
lency,  Count  von  Herbeck,  and  say  that  you 
came  from  forty  Krumerweg." 

Gretchen  shuddered  with  a  mixture  of  appre 
hension  and  delight.  To  meet  and  speak  to  all 
these  great  ones ! 

"And  if  I  can  not  get  in?" 

"You  will  have  no  trouble.  Be  sure,  though, 
to  give  the  note  to  no  one  but  her  highness. 
There  will  be  no  answer.  All  I  ask  is  that  when 
you  return  you  will  tell  me  if  you  were  success 
ful.  You  may  go." 

Gretchen  put  the  note  away  and  went  down 
stairs.  She  decked  her  beautiful  head  with  a 
little  white  cap,  which  she  wore  only  on  Sun 
days  and  at  the  opera,  and  braided  and  berib- 
boned  her  hair.  It  never  occurred  to  her  that 
there  was  anything  unusual  in  the  incident.  It 
was  only  when  she  came  out  into  the  Konig 
Strasse  that  the  puzzle  of  it  came  to  her  forcibly. 
Who  was  this  old  woman  who  thought  nothing 
of  writing  a  letter  to  her  serene  highness  ?  And 
who  were  her  nocturnal  visitors?  Gretchen  had 


158          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

no  patience  with  puzzles,  so  she  let  her  mind 
revel  in  the  thought  that  she  was  to  see  and 
speak  to  the  princess  whom  she  admired  and  re 
vered.  What  luck!  How  smoothly  the  world 
was  beginning  to  run ! 

Being  of  a  discerning  mind,  she  idled  about 
the  Platz  till  after  nine,  for  it  had  been  told  to 
her  that  the  great  sleep  rather  late  in  the  morn 
ing.  What  should  she  say  to  her  serene  high 
ness?  What  kind  of  a  curtsy  should  she  make? 
These  and  a  hundred  other  questions  flitted 
through  her  head.  At  least  she  would  wear  no 
humble,  servile  air.  For  Gretchen  was  a  bit  of 
a  socialist.  Did  not  Herr  Goldberg,  whom  the 
police  detested,  did  he  not  say  that  all  men  were 
equal?  And  surely  this  sweeping  statement  in 
cluded  women !  She  attended  secret  meetings  in 
the  damp  cellar  of  the  Black  Eagle,  and,  while 
she  laughed  at  some  of  the  articles  in  the  propa 
ganda,  she  received  seriously  enough  that  which 
proclaimed  her  the  equal  of  any  one.  So  long 
as  she  obeyed  nature's  laws  and  Heaven's,  was 
she  not  indeed  the  equal  of  queens  and  princesses, 
who,  it  was  said,  did  not  always  obey  these  laws  ? 

With  a  confidence  born  of  right  and  inno- 


ORE  TOKEN'S    DAY         159 

cence,  she  proceeded  toward  the  east  or  side  gates 
of  the  palace.  The  sentry  smiled  at  her. 

"I  have  a  letter  for  her  serene  highness,"  she 
said. 

"Leave  it." 

"I  am  under  orders  to  give  it  to  her  highness 
herself." 

"Good  day,  then !"  laughed  the  soldier.  "You 
can  not  enter  the  gardens  without  a  permit." 

Gretchen  remembered.  "Will  you  send  some 
one  to  his  excellency  the  chancellor  and  tell  him 
I  have  come  from  number  forty  Krumerweg?" 

"Krumerweg?  The  very  name  ought  to  close 
any  gate.  But,  girl,  are  you  speaking  truth 
fully?" 

Gretchen  exhibited  the  note.  He  scratched 
his  chin,  perplexed. 

"Run  along.  If  they  ask  me,  I'll  say  that  I 
didn't  see  you."  The  sentry  resumed  his  beat. 

Gretchen  stepped  inside  the  gates,  and  the 
real  beauty  of  the  gardens  was  revealed  to  her 
for  the  first  time.  Strange  flowers  she  had  never 
seen  before,  plants  with  great  broad  leaves, 
grass-like  carpet,  and  giant  ferns,  unlike  any 
thing  she  had  plucked  in  the  valleys  and  the 


160          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

mountains.  It  was  all  a  fairy-land.  There  were 
marble  urns  with  hanging  vines,  and  marble 
statues.  She  loitered  in  this  pebbled  path  and 
that,  forgetful  of  her  errand.  Even  had  her 
mind  been  filled  with  the  importance  of  it,  she 
did  not  know  where  to  go  to  find  the  proper  en 
trance. 

A  hand  grasped  her  rudely  by  the  arm. 

"What  are  you  doing  here?"  thundered  the 
head  gardener.  "Be  off  with  you!  Don't  you 
know  that  no  one  is  allowed  in  here  without  a 
permit  ?" 

Gretchen  wrenched  free  her  arm.  She  was 
angry. 

"How  dare  you  touch  me  like  that  ?" 

Something  in  her  glance,  which  was  singularly 
arrogant,  cooled  even  the  warm-blooded  Her 
mann. 

"But  you  live  in  Dreiberg  and  ought  to 
know." 

"You  could  have  told  me  without  bruising  my 
arm,"  defiantly. 

"I  am  sorry  if  I  hurt  you,  but  you  ought  to 
have  known  better.  By  which  sentry  did  you 
pass?"  for  there  was  that  about  her  beauty 


GRETCHEN'S    DAY         161 

which  made  him  suspicious  regarding  the  sen 
try's  imperviousness  to  it. 

"Hermann !" 

Gretchen  and  the  head  gardener  whirled. 
Through  a  hedge  which  divided  the  formal  gar 
dens  from  the  tennis  and  archery  grounds  came 
a  young  woman  in  riding-habit.  She  carried  a 
book  in  one  hand  and  a  riding-whip  in  the  other. 

"What  is  the  trouble,  Hermann?"  she  in 
quired.  "Your  voice  was  something  high." 

"Your  Highness,  this  young  woman  here  had 
the  impudence  to  walk  into  the  gardens  and 
stroll  about  as  nice  as  you  please,"  indignantly. 

"Has  she  stolen  any  flowers  or  trod  on  any  of 
the  beds?" 

"Why,  no,  your  Highness ;  but — " 

"What  is  the  harm,  then?" 

"But  it  is  not  customary,  your  Highness.  If 
we  permitted  this  on  the  part  of  the  people,  the 
gardens  would  be  ruined  in  a  week." 

"We,  you  and  I,  Hermann,"  said  her  high 
ness,  with  a  smile  that  won  Gretchen  on  the  spot, 
"we  will  overlook  this  first  offense.  Perhaps  this 
young  lady  had  some  errand  and  lost  her  way." 

''Yes,  Highness,"  replied  Gretchen  eagerly. 


162          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"Ah!    You  may  go,  Hermann." 

"Your  highness  alone  with — " 

"Go  at  once,"  kindly,  but  with  royal  firmness. 

Hermann  bowed,  gathered  up  his  pruning 
knives  and  scissors  which  he  had  let  fall,  and 
stalked  down  the  path.  What  was  it?  he  won 
dered.  She  was  a  princess  in  all  things  save  her 
lack  of  coldness  toward  the  people.  It  was 
wrong  to  meet  them  in  this  way,  it  was  not  in 
order.  Her  highness  had  lived  too  long  among 
them.  She  would  never  rid  herself  of  the  idea 
that  the  humble  had  hearts  and  minds  like  the 
exalted. 

As  the  figure  of  the  head  gardener  diminished 
and  shortly  vanished  behind  a  bed  of  palms,  her 
highness  laughed  brightly,  and  Gretchen,  to 
her  own  surprise,  found  herself  laughing  also, 
easily  and  without  constraint. 

"Whom  were  you  seeking?"  her  highness 
asked,  rather  startled  by  the  undeniable  beauty 
of  this  peasant. 

"I  was  seeking  your  serene  highness.  I  live 
at  number  forty  the  Krumerweg,  and  the  sick 
woman  gave  me  this  note  for  you." 

"Krumerweg?"    Her  highness  reached  for  the 


GRETCHEN'S    DAY         163 

note  and  read  it,  and  as  she  read  tears  gathered 
in  her  eyes.  "Follow  me,"  she  said.  She  led 
Gretchen  to  a  marble  bench  and  sat  down. 
Gretchen  remained  on  her  feet  respectfully. 
"What  is  your  name?" 

"Gretchen,  Highness." 

"Well,  Gretchen,  sit  down." 

"In  your  presence,  Highness?"  aghast. 

"Don't  bother  about  my  presence  on  a  morn 
ing  like  this.  Sit  down." 

This  was  a  command  and  Gretchen  obeyed 
with  alacrity.  It  would  not  be  difficult,  thought 
Gretchen,  to  love  a  princess  like  this,  who  was 
not  only  lovely  but  sensible.  The  two  sat  mutely. 
They  were  strangely  alike.  Their  eyes  nearly 
matched,  their  hair,  even  the  shape  of  their  faces. 
They  were  similarly  molded,  too ;  only,  one  was 
slender  and  graceful,  after  the  manner  of  fash 
ion,  while  the  other  was  slender  and  graceful 
directly  from  the  hands  of  nature.  The  health 
of  outdoors  was  visible  in  their  fine  skins  and 
clear  eyes.  The  marked  difference  lay,  of 
course,  in  their  hands.  The  princess  had  never 
toiled  with  her  fingers  except  on  the  piano. 
Gretchen  had  plucked  geese  and  dug  vegetables 


164          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

with  hers.  They  were  rough,  but  toil  had  not 
robbed  them  of  their  natural  grace. 

"How  was  she?"  her  highness  asked. 

"About  the  same,  Highness." 

"Have  you  wondered  why  she  should  write  to 
me?" 

"Highness,  it  was  natural  that  I  should,"  was 
Gretchen's  frank  admission. 

"She  took  me  in  when  nobody  knew  who  I 
was,  clothed  and  fed  me,  and  taught  me  music 
so  that  some  day  I  should  not  be  helpless  when 
the  battle  of  life  began.  Ah,"  impulsively,  "had 
I  my  way  she  would  be  housed  in  the  palace,  not 
in  the  lonely  Krumerweg.  But  my  father  does 
not  know  that  she  is  in  Dreiberg;  and  we  dare 
not  tell  him,  for  he  still  believes  that  she  had 
something  to  do  with  my  abduction."  Then 
she  stopped.  She  was  strangely  making  this 
peasant  her  confidante.  What  a  whim ! 

"Highness,  that  could  not  be." 

"No,  Gretchen;  she  had  nothing  to  do  with 
it."  Her  highness  leveled  her  gaze  at  the  flow 
ers,  but  her  eyes  saw  only  the  garret  or  the 
barnlike  loneliness  of  the  opera  during  rehear 
sals. 


She  led  Gretchen  to  a  marble  bench  and  sat  down.     Page  173. 


GRETCHEN'S    DAY         165 

Gretchen  did  not  move.  She  saw  that  her 
highness  was  dreaming;  and  she  herself  had 
dreams. 

"Do  you  like  music?" 

"Highness,  I  am  always  singing." 

"La — la — la !"  sang  the  princess  capriciously. 

"La — la — la !"  sang  Gretchen  smiling.  Her 
voice  was  not  purer  or  sweeter ;  it  was  merely 
stronger,  having  been  accustomed  to  the  open 
air. 

"Brava!"  cried  the  princess,  dropping  book 
and  whip  and  folding  the  note  inside  the  book. 
"Who  taught  you  to  sing?" 

"Nobody,  highness." 

"What  do  you  do?" 

"I  am  a  goose-girl;  in  the  fall  and  winter  I 
work  at  odd  times  in  the  Black  Eagle." 

"The  Black  Eagle?    A  tavern?" 

"Yes,  Highness." 

"Tell  me  all  about  yourself." 

This  was  easy  for  Gretchen;  there  was  so 
little. 

"Neither  mother  nor  father.  Our  lives  are 
something  alike.  A  handsome  girl  like  you  must 
have  a  sweetheart." 


166          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

Gretchen  blushed.  "Yes,  Highness.  I  am  to 
be  married  soon.  He  is  a  vintner.  I  would  not 
trade  him  for  your  king,  Highness,"  with  a  spice 
of  boldness. 

Her  highness  did  not  take  offense ;  rather  she 
liked  this  frankness.  In  truth,  she  liked  any  one 
who  spoke  to  her  on  equal  footing;  it  was  a 
taste  of  the  old  days  when  she  herself  could  have 
chosen  a  vintner  and  married  him,  with  none  to 
say  her  nay.  Now  she  was  only  a  pretty  bird  in 
a  gilded  cage.  She  could  fly,  but  whenever  she 
did  so  she  blundered  painfully  against  the  bright 
wires.  If  there  was  any  envy  between  these  two, 
it  existed  in  the  heart  of  the  princess  only.  To 
be  free  like  this,  to  come  and  go  at  will,  to  love 
where  the  heart  spoke !  She  surrendered  to  an 
other  vagrant  impulse. 

"Gretchen,  I  do  not  think  I  shall  marry  the 
king  of  Jugendheit." 

Gretchen  grew  red  with  pride.  Her  highness 
was  telling  her  state  secrets ! 

"You  love  some  one  else,  Highness?"  How 
should  a  goose-girl  know  that  such  a  question 
was  indelicate? 

Her  highness  did  not  blush;  the  color  in  her 


GRETCHEN'S    DAY         167 

cheeks  receded.  She  fondled  the  heart-shaped 
locket  which  she  invariably  wore  round  her 
throat.  That  this  peasant  girl  should  thus 
boldly  put  a  question  she  herself  had  never  dared 
to  press ! 

"You  must  not  ask  questions  like  that, 
Gretchen." 

"Pardon,  Highness;  I  did  not  think." 
Gretchen  was  disturbed. 

But  the  princess  comforted  her  with :  "I  know 
it.  There  are  some  questions  which  should  not 
be  asked  even  by  the  heart." 

This  was  not  understandable  to  Gretchen ;  but 
the  locket  pleased  her  eye.  Her  highness,  ob 
serving  her  interest,  slipped  the  trinket  from  her 
neck  and  laid  it  in  Gretchen's  hand. 

"Open  it,"  she  said.  "It  is  a  picture  of  my 
mother,  whom  I  do  not  recollect  having  ever  seen. 
Wait,"  as  Gretchen  turned  it  about  helplessly. 
"I  will  open  it  for  you."  Click ! 

Gretchen  sighed  deeply.  To  have  had  a 
mother  so  fair  and  pretty!  She  hadn't  an  idea 
how  her  own  mother  had  looked;  indeed,  being 
sensible  and  not  given  much  to  conjuring,  she 
had  rarely  bothered  her  head  about  it.  Still,  as 


168          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

she  gazed  at  this  portrait,  the  sense  of  her  isola 
tion  and  loneliness  drew  down  upon  her,  and  she 
in  her  turn  sought  the  flowers  and  saw  them  not. 
After  a  while  she  closed  the  locket  and  re 
turned  it. 

"So  you  love  music?"  picking  up  the  safer 
thread. 

"Ah,  yes,  Highness." 

"Do  you  ever  go  to  the  opera?" 

"As  often  as  I  can  afford.     I  am  very  poor."  • 

"I  will  give  you  a  ticket  for  the  season.  How 
can  I  reward  you  for  bringing  this  message? 
Don't  have  any  false  pride.  Ask  for  some 
thing." 

"Well,  then,  Highness,  give  me  an  order  on 
the  grand  duke's  head  vintner  for  a  place." 

"For  the  man  who  is  to  become  your  hus 
band?" 

"Yes,  Highness." 

"You  shall  have  it  to-morrow.  Now,  come 
with  me.  I  am  going  to  take  you  to  Herr  Ernst. 
He  is  the  director  of  the  opera.  He  rehearses 
in  the  court  theater  this  morning." 

Gretchen,  undetermined  whether  she  was  wak 
ing  or  dreaming,  followed  the  princess.  She 


GRETCHEN'S    DAY         169 

was  serenely  unafraid,  to  her  own  great  wonder. 
Who  could  describe  her  sensations  as  she  passed 
through  marble  halls,  up  marble  staircases, 
over  great  rugs  so  soft  that  her  step  faltered? 
Her  wooden  shoes  made  a  clatter  whenever  they 
left  the  rugs,  but  she  stepped  as  lightly  as  she 
could.  She  heard  music  and  voices  presently, 
and  the  former  she  recognized.  As  her  highness 
entered  the  Bijou  Theater,  the  Herr  Direktor 
stopped  the  music.  In  the  little  gallery,  which 
served  as  the  royal  box,  sat  several  ladies  and 
gentlemen  of  the  court,  the  grand  duke  being 
among  them.  Her  highness  nodded  at  them 
brightly. 

"Good  morning,  Herr  Direktor." 

"Good  morning,  your  Highness." 

"I  have  brought  you  a  prima  donna,"  touch 
ing  Gretchen  with  her  whip. 

The  Herr  Direktor  showed  his  teeth ;  her  high 
ness  was  always  playing  some  jest. 

"What  shall  she  sing  in,  your  Highness  ?  We 
are  rehearsing  The  Bohemian  Girl." 

The  chorus  and  singers  on  the  little  stage  ex 
changed  smiles. 

"I  want  your  first  violin,"  said  her  highness^ 


170          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"Anton!" 

A  youth  stood  up  in  the  orchestral  pit. 

"Now,  your  Highness  ?"  said  the  Herr  Direk- 
tor. 

"Try  her  voice." 

And  the  Herr  Direktor  saw  that  she  was  not 
smiling.  He  bade  the  violinist  to  draw  his  bow 
over  a  single  note. 

"Imitate  it,  Gretchen,"  commanded  her  high 
ness  ;  "and  don't  be  afraid  of  the  Herr  Direktor 
or  of  the  ladies  and  gentlemen  in  the  gallery." 

Gretchen  lifted  her  voice.  It  was  sweeter  and 
mellower  than  the  violin. 

"Again!"  the  Herr  Direktor  cried,  no  longer 
curious. 

Without  apparent  effort  Gretchen  passed 
from  one  note  to  another,  now  high,  now  low, 
or  strong  or  soft;  a  trill,  a  run.  The  violinist, 
of  his  own  accord,  began  the  jewel  song  from 
Faust.  Gretchen  did  not  know  the  words,  but 
she  carried  the  melody  without  mishap.  And 
then,  I  Dreamt  I  Dwelt  in  Marble  Halls.  This 
song  she  knew  word  for  word,  and  ah,  she  sang 
it  with  strange  and  haunting  tenderness !  One 
by  one  the  musicians  dropped  their  instruments 


ORE  TC  HEN'S    DAY         171 

to  their  knees.  The  grand  duke  in  the  gallery 
leaned  over  the  velvet-buffered  railing.  All  real 
ized  that  a  great  voice  was  being  tried  before 
them.  The  Herr  Direktor  struck  his  music-stand 
sharply.  It  was  enough. 

"Your  highness  has  played  a  fine  jest  this  day. 
Where  does  madame  your  guest  sing,  in  Berlin 
or  Vienna?" 

"In  neither,"  answered  her  highness,  mightily 
gratified  with  Gretchen's  success.  "She  lives  in 
Dreiberg,  and  till  this  morning  I  doubt  if  I  ever 
saw  her  before." 

The  Herr  Direktor  stared  blankly  from  her 
highness  to  Gretchen,  and  back  to  her  highness 
again.  Then  he  grasped  it.  Here  was  one  of 
those  moments  when  the  gods  make  gifts  to 
mortals. 

"Can  you  read  music  ?"  he  asked. 

"No,  Herr,"  said  Gretchen. 

"That  is  bad.  You  have  a  great  voice,  Frau- 
lein.  Well,  I  shall  teach  you.  I  shall  make  you 
a  great  singer.  It  is  hard  work." 

"I  have  always  worked  hard." 

"Good !  Your  Highness,  a  thousand  thanks ! 
What  is  your  name?"  to  Gretchen.  She  told 


172          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

him.  "It  is  a  good  name.  Come  to  me  Monday 
at  the  opera  and  I  shall  put  you  into  good  hands. 
Some  day  you  will  be  rich,  and  I  shall  become 
great  because  I  found  you." 

Then,  with  the  artist's  positive  indifference  to 
the  presence  of  exalted  blood,  he  turned  his  back 
upon  the  two  young  women  and  roused  his  men 
from  the  trance. 

"So,  Gretchen,"  said  her  highness,  when  the 
two  came  out  again  into  the  garden,  "you  are  to 
be  rich  and  famous.  That  will  be  fine." 

"Thanks,  Highness,  thanks!  God  grant  the 
day  to  come  when  I  may  be  of  service  to  you !" 
Gretchen  kissed  the  hands  of  her  benefactress. 

"Whenever  you  wish  to  see  the  gardens,"  add 
ed  the  princess,  "the  gates  will  be  open  for  you." 

As  Gretchen  went  back  to  the  Krumerweg  her 
wooden  shoes  were  golden  slippers  and  her  rough 
homespun,  silk.  Rich !  Famous !  She  saw  the 
opera  ablaze  with  lights,  she  heard  the  roll  of 
applause.  She  saw  the  horn  of  plenty  pouring 
its  largess  from  the  fair  sky.  Rainbow  dreams ! 
But  Gretchen  never  became  a  prima  donna. 
There  was  something  different  on  the  knees  of 
the  gods. 


CHAPTER  X 

AFFAIRS    OF    STATE 

THE  grand  duke  stamped  back  and  forth 
with  a  rumble  as  of  distant  thunder.  He 
would  search  the  very  deeps  of  this  matter.  He 
was  of  a  patient  mold,  but  this  was  the  final 
straw.  He  would  have  his  revenge  if  it  upset 
the  whole  continent.  They  would  play  with 
him,  eh?  Well,  they  had  loosed  the  lion  this 
time.  He  had  sent  his  valet  to  summon  her 
highness  and  Herbeck. 

"And  tell  them  to  put  everything  else  aside." 
He  kneaded  the  note  in  his  hand  powerfully. 
It  was  anonymous,  but  it  spoke  clearly  like  truth. 
It  had  been  left  with  one  of  the  sentries,  who  de 
clared  that  a  small  boy  had  delivered  it.  The 
sender  remained  undiscoverable. 

His  highness  had  just  that  hour   returned 
from  the  military  field.     He  was  tired;  and  it 
was  not  the  psychological  moment  for  a  thing 
173 


174          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

like  this  to  turn  up.  Had  he  not  opposed  it  for 
months?  And  now,  having  surrendered  against 
his  better  judgment,  this  gratuitous  affront  was 
offered  him!  It  was  damnable.  He  smote  the 
offending  note.  He  would  soon  find  out  whether 
it  was  true  or  not.  Then  he  flung  the  thing 
violently  to  the  floor.  But  he  realized  that  this 
burst  of  fury  would  not  translate  the  muddle, 
so  he  stooped  and  recovered  the  missive.  He 
laughed,  but  the  laughter  had  a  grim  Homeric 
sound.  War !  Nothing  less.  He  was  prepared 
for  it.  Twenty  thousand  troops  were  now  in 
the  valley,  and  there  were  twenty  thousand  re 
serves.  What  Franz  Josef  of  Austria  or  Wil 
liam  of  Prussia  said  did  not  amount  to  the  snap 
of  his  two  fingers.  To  avenge  himself  of  the 
wrongs  so  long  endured  of  Jugendheit,  to  wipe 
out  the  score  with  blood!  Did  they  think  that 
he  was  in  his  dotage,  to  offer  an  insult  of  this 
magnitude?  They  should  see,  aye,  that  they 
should !  It  did  not  matter  that  the  news  reached 
him  through  subterranean  channels  or  by  treach 
ery  ;  there  was  truth  here,  and  that  sufficed. 

"Enter !"  he  cried,  as  some  one  knocked  on  the 
door. 


AFFAIRS    OF    STATE       175 

Herbeck  came  in,  as  calm,  as  imperturbable 
as  ever. 

"Your  highness  sent  for  me?" 

"I  did.  Why  the  devil  couldn't  you  have  left 
well  enough  alone  ?  Read  this !"  flinging  the 
note  down  on  his  desk. 

Herbeck  picked  it  up  and  worked  out  the 
creases.  When  he  had  read  to  the  final  word, 
his  hand,  even  as  the  duke's,  closed  spasmodi 
cally  over  the  stiff  paper. 

"Well?"    The  query  tingled  with  rage. 

The  answer  on  the  chancellor's  lips  was  not 
uttered.  Hildegarde  came  in.  She  blew  a  kiss 
at  her  father,  who  caught  the  hand  and  drew 
her  toward  him.  He  embraced  her  and  kissed  her 
brow. 

"What  is  it,  father?" 

Herbeck  waited. 

"Read,"  said  the  duke. 

As  the  last  word  left  Herbeck's  lips,  she 
slipped  from  her  father's  arms  and  looked  with 
pity  at  the  chancellor. 

"What  do  you  think  of  this,  Hildegarde?" 

"Why,  father,  I  think  it  is  the  very  best  thing 
in  the  world,"  dryly. 


176          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"An  insult  like  this?"  The  duke  grew  rigid. 
"You  accept  it  calmly,  in  this  fashion?" 

"Shall  I  weep  and  tear  mj  hair  over  a  boy  I 
have  never  seen?  No,  thank  you.  I  was  about 
to  make  known  to  you  this  very  evening  that  I 
had  reconsidered  the  offer.  I  shall  never  marry 
his  majesty." 

"A  fine  time!"  The  duke's  hand  trembled. 
"Why,  in  God's  name,  did  you  not  refuse  when 
the  overtures  were  first  made?  The  truth,  Her- 
beck,  the  whole  truth;  for  there  is  something 
more  than  this." 

Herbeck,  in  few  words  and  without  evasion, 
explained  the  situation. 

"Your  Highness,  the  regent  is  really  not  to 
blame,  for  his  majesty  had  given  him  free  rein 
in  the  matter ;  and  his  royal  highness,  working 
as  I  have  been  for  the  best  interests  of  the  two 
countries,  never  dreamed  that  the  king  would 
rebel.  All  my  heart  and  all  my  mind  have  been 
working  toward  this  end,  toward  a  greater  peace 
and  prosperity.  The  king  has  been  generous 
enough  to  leave  the  publicity  in  our  hands ;  that 
is  to  say,  he  agrees  to  accept  the  humiliation  of 
being  rejected  by  her  serene  highness." 


AFFAIRS    OF    STATE       177 

"That  is  very  generous  of  him !"  said  the  duke 
sarcastically.  "Send  for  Ducwitz." 

"Ducwitz,  your  Highness?"  cried  the  chan 
cellor,  chilled. 

"Immediately !" 

"Father!" 

"Must  I  give  an  order  twice?" 

"Your  Highness,  if  you  call  Ducwitz  I  shall 
surrender  my  portfolio  to  you."  The  chancellor 
spoke  without  anger,  quietly  but  firmly. 

"Do  so.  There  are  others  to  take  up  your 
work."  The  duke,  for  the  moment,  had  thrown 
reason  to  the  winds.  Revenge,  the  clamor  of 
revenge,  was  all  the  voice  he  heard. 

The  chancellor  bowed,  turned  to  leave  the 
room,  when  Hildegarde  flew  to  the  duke's  side 
and  snatched  at  his  sleeve. 

"Father,  you  are  mad !" 

"At  least  I  am  master  in  Ehrenstein.  Her- 
beck,  you  will  have  the  kindness  to  summon 
General  Ducwitz." 

"Your  Highness,"  replied  Herbeck,  "I  have 
worked  long  and  faithfully  in  your  service.  I 
can  not  recollect  that  I  ever  asked  one  personal 
favor.  But  I  do  so  now.  Do  not  send  for  Duo 


178          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

witz  to-night.  See  him  in  the  morning.  This 
is  no  time  for  haste.  You  will  throw  the  army 
into  Jugendheit,  and  there  will  follow  a  bloody 
war.  For  I  have  to  inform  you  that  the  prince 
regent,  recognizing  the  false  position  he  is  in, 
has  taken  the  ram  by  the  horns.  His  troops  are 
already  bivouacked  on  the  other  side  of  the  pass. 
This  I  learned  to-day.  He  will  not  strike  first ; 
he  will  wait  for  you." 

"I  will  have  my  revenge  1"  stubbornly. 

"Father,  listen  to  me.  7  am  the  affronted 
person;  7,  I  alone,  have  the  right  to  say  what 
shall  be  done  in  the  matter.  And  I  say  to  you 
if  you  do  these  cruel  things,  dismiss  his  excel 
lency  and  bring  war  and  death  to  Ehrenstein,  I 
will  never  forgive  you,  never,  never!  You  are 
wrong,  wrong,  and  I,  your  daughter,  tell  you  so 
frankly.  Leave  it  to  me.  There  will  be  neither 
war  nor  humiliation." 

As  the  duke  gazed  at  her  the  wrath  gathering 
in  his  throat  receded  and  his  admiration  grew. 
His  daughter!  She  was  a  princess,  indeed,  as 
she  stood  there,  fearless,  resolute,  beautiful.  And 
her  very  beauty  gave  recurrence  to  his  wrath. 
A  fool  of  a  king  he  was,  a  fool  of  a  king ! 


AFFAIRS   OF   STATE       179 

"My  dear  child,"  he  said,  "I  have  suffered  too 
much  at  the  hands  of  Jugendheit.  It  was  my 
daughter  the  first  time;  it  is  my  honor  now," 
proudly. 

"Will  it  balance  war  and  devastation?"  the 
girl  asked  quietly.  "Is  it  not  pride  rather  than 
honor?  The  prince  regent  made  a  pardonable 
blunder.  Do  not  you,  my  father,  make  an  un 
pardonable  one.  The  king  is  without  blame,  for 
you  appeal  to  his  imagination  as  a  man  who 
deeply  wronged  his  father.  I  harbor  no  ill- 
feeling  against  him  or  his  uncle,  because  I  look 
at  the  matter  from  an  impersonal  point  of  view ; 
it  was  for  the  good  of  the  state.  This  blunder 
can  be  undone ;  therefore  it  is  not  wise  to  double 
it,  to  make  it  irreparable." 

"A  Portia  to  the  judgment!"  said  the  chan 
cellor,  his  eye  kindling.  "Let  it  all  rest  upon 
my  shoulders.  I  alone  am  to  blame.  It  was  I 
who  first  suggested  the  alliance.  We  all  have 
dreams,  active  or  passive,  futile  or  purposeful. 
My  ambition  was  to  bring  about  a  real  and  last 
ing  peace.  Your  Highness,  I  have  failed  sig 
nally.  There  is  nothing  to  do  now  but  to  appoint 
my  successor."  All  the  chancellor's  force  and 


180          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

immobility  of  countenance  gave  way,  and  he 
looked  the  broken  man. 

Notwithstanding  that  he  was  generally  hasty, 
the  duke  was  a  just  man.  In  his  heart  of  hearts 
he  understood.  He  offered  his  hand,  with  half 
a  smile ;  and  when  he  smiled  he  was  a  handsome 
old  man. 

"You  are  bidding  me  farewell,  your  High 
ness  ?"  said  Herbeck. 

"No,  Count.  I  would  not  let  you  go  for  half 
my  duchy.  What  should  I  do  without  your  solid 
common  sense  ?  No ;  remain ;  we  are  both  of  us 
too  old  to  quarrel.  Even  a  duke  may  be  a  fool 
sometimes." 

Herbeck  laid  his  cold  hand  upon  the  duke's. 
Then  he  went  over  to  her  highness  and  kissed  her 
hand  gratefully,  for  it  was  truly  at  her  feet  the 
wreath  of  victory  lay. 

"Highness,"  he  said  softly,  "you  are  the  fair 
est,  finest  princess  in  the  world,  and  you  shall 
marry  when  you  will." 

"And  where?" 

"I  would  that  I  could  make  it  so.  But  there 
is  a  penalty  for  being  placed  so  high.  We  can 
not  change  this  unwritten  law." 


iAFFAIRS    OF    STATE       181 

"Heaven  did  not  write  it,"  she  replied. 

"No,  my  daughter,"  said  the  duke.  "Man  is 
at  the  bottom  of  all  the  kinks  and  twists  in  this 
short  life;  not  Heaven.  But  Herbeck  is  right; 
you  shall  marry  when  you  will." 

She  sprang  into  his  arms  and  kissed  him.  It 
was,  however,  a  traitorous  kiss ;  for  she  was  say 
ing  in  her  heart  that  now  she  would  never  marry. 

Herbeck's  eyes  wandered  to  the  portrait  over 
the  fireplace.  It  was  the  girl's  mother. 

The  knock  of  the  valet  was  again  heard. 

"Your  Highness,  there  is  a  young  woman,  a 
peasant,  who  desires  to  speak  to  her  serene  high 
ness." 

"Where  is  she  ?"  asked  the  duke. 

"She  is  outside,  your  Highness." 

"What!  She  enters  the  palace  without  any 
more  trouble  than  this?" 

"By  my  orders,  father,"  said  Hildegarde,  who 
gathered  that  this  privileged  visitor  must  be 
Gretchen  of  the  Krumerweg.  "Admit  her." 

"Truly  we  are  becoming  socialists,"  said  the 
duke,  appealing  to  Herbeck,  who  replied  with 
his  usual  grim  smile. 

Gretchen  was  ushered  in.     Her  throat  was  a 


182          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

little  full  as  she  recognized  the  three  most  im 
portant  persons  in  the  grand  duchy.  Outwardly 
she  was  composed.  She  made  a  curtsy  to  which 
the  duke  replied  with  his  most  formal  bow  of 
state.  The  sparkle  of  amusement  was  in  his 
eyes. 

"The  little  goose-girl!"  he  said  half -audibly. 

"Yes,  Highness."  Gretchen's  face  was  serious 
and  her  eyes  were  mournful.  She  carried  an 
envelope  in  her  hand  tightly. 

"Come  to  me,  Gretchen,"  said  the  princess. 
"What  is  it?" 

Gretchen's  eyes  roamed  undecidedly  from  the 
duke  to  Herbeck. 

"She  is  dead,  Highness,  and  I  found  this  letter 
under  her  pillow." 

It  was  Herbeck's  hand  that  took  the  envelope. 
But  he  did  not  open  it  at  once. 

"Dead?"    Hildegarde's  eyes  filled. 

"Who  is  dead  ?"  demanded  the  duke. 

"Emma  Schultz,  father.  Oh,  I  know  you  will 
forgive  me  for  this  deception.  She  has  been  in 
Dreiberg  for  a  month,  dying,  and  I  have  often 
stolen  out  to  see  her."  She  let  her  tears  fall  un 
restrained. 


The  duke  stared  at  the  rug.  Presently  he 
said:  "Let  her  be  buried  in  consecrated  ground. 
Wrong  or  right,  that  chapter  is  closed,  my  child, 
and  I  am  glad  you  made  her  last  moments  happy. 
It  was  like  you.  It  was  like  your  mother.  What 
is  in  the  letter,  Herbeck?" 

Herbeck  was  a  strong  man ;  he  was  always  far 
removed  from  tears ;  but  there  was  a  mist  over 
the  usual  clarity  of  his  vision.  He  ripped  down 
the  flap.  It  was  only  a  simple  note  to  her  serene 
highness,  begging  her  to  give  the  enclosed  bank 
notes  to  one  Gretchen  who  lived  in  the  Krumer- 
weg.  The  notes  represented  a  thousand  crowns. 

"Take  them,  little  goose-girl,"  said  the  duke ; 
"your  ship  has  come  in.  This  will  be  your 
dowry." 

An  icy  shiver  ran  up  and  down  Gretchen's 
spine,  a  shiver  of  wonder,  delight,  terror.  A 
thousand  crowns  !  A  fortune ! 

"Hold  out  your  hand,"  requested  Herbeck. 
One  by  one  he  laid  the  notes  on  the  goose-girl's 
hand.  "This  is  only  a  just  reward  for  being 
kind  and  gentle  to  the  unfortunate." 

"And  I  shall  add  to  it  another  thousand," 
said  Hildegarde.  "Give  them  to  me,  father." 


184          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

In  all,  this  fortune  amounted  to  little  more 
than  four  hundred  dollars;  but  to  Gretchen, 
frugal  and  thrifty,  to  whom  a  single  crown  was 
a  large  sum,  to  her  it  represented  wealth.  She 
was  now  the  richest  girl  in  the  lower  town. 
Dreams  of  kaleidoscopic  variety  flew  through 
her  head.  Little  there  was,  however,  of  jewels 
and  gowns.  This  vast  sum  would  be  the  buffer 
between  her  and  hunger  while  she  pursued  the 
one  great  ambition  of  her  life — music.  She  tried 
to  speak,  to  thank  them,  but  her  voice  was  gone. 
Tears  sprang  into  her  eyes.  She  had  the  power 
to  do  no  more  than  weep. 

The  duke  was  the  first  to  relieve  the  awkward 
ness  of  the  moment. 

"Count,  has  it  not  occurred  to  you  that  we 
stand  in  the  presence  of  two  very  beautiful 
young  women?" 

Herbeck  scrutinized  Gretchen  with  care ;  then 
he  compared  her  with  the  princess.  The  duke 
was  right.  The  goose-girl  was  not  a  whit  the 
inferior  of  the  princess.  And  the  thing  which 
struck  him  with  most  force  was  that,  while  each 
possessed  a  beauty  individual  to  herself,  it  was 
not  opposite,  but  strangely  alike. 


AFFAIRS    OF    STATE       185 

The  goose-girl  had  returned  to  her  gloomy 
Krumerweg,  the  princess  had  gone  to  her  apart 
ments,  and  Herbeck  to  his  cabinet.  The  duke 
was  alone.  For  a  long  period  he  stood  before 
the  portrait  of  his  wife.  The  beauties  of  his 
courtship  trooped  past  him ;  for  God  had  given 
to  the  grand  duke  of  Ehrenstein  that  which  He 
denies  most  of  us,  high  or  low,  a  perfect  love. 

"Always,  always,  dear  heart,"  he  whispered; 
"in  this  life  and  in  the  life  to  come.  To  love, 
what  is  the  sickle  of  death?" 

He  passed  on  to  his  secretary  and  opened  a 
drawer.  He  laid  a  small  bundle  on  the  desk  and 
untied  the  string.  One  by  one  he  ranged  the 
articles ;  two  little  yellow  shoes,  a  little  cloak 
trimmed  with  ermine.  There  had  been  a  locket, 
but  that  was  now  worn  by  her  highness. 


CHAPTER  XI 

THE    SOCIALISTS 

HERMANN  BREUNNER  lived  in  the 
granite  lodge,  just  within  the  eastern 
gates  of  the  royal  gardens.  He  was  a  widower 
and  shared  the  ample  lodge  with  the  undergar- 
deners  and  their  families.  He  lived  with  them, 
but  signally  apart.  They  gave  him  as  much  re 
spect  as  if  he  had  been  the  duke  himself.  He 
was  a  lonely,  taciturn  man,  deeply  concerned 
with  his  work,  and  a  botanical  student  of  no 
mean  order.  No  comrade  helped  him  pass  away 
an  evening  in  the  chimney-corner,  pipe  in  hand 
and  good  cheer  in  the  mug.  This  isolation  was 
not  accidental,  it  was  Hermann's  own  selection. 
He  was  a  man  of  brooding  moods,  and  there  was 
no  laughter  in  his  withered  heart,  though  the 
false  sound  of  it  crossed  his  lips  at  infrequent 
intervals. 

He  adjusted  his  heavy  spectacles  and  held  the 
186 


THE    SOCIALISTS  187 

note  slantingly  toward  the  candle.  A  note  or  a 
letter  was  a  singular  event  in  Hermann's  life. 
Not  that  he  looked  forward  with  eagerness  to 
receive  them,  but  that  there  was  no  one  existing 
who  cared  enough  about  him  to  write.  This 
note  left  by  the  porter  of  the  Grand  Hotel  moved 
him  with  surprise.  It  requested  that  he  present 
himself  at  eight  o'clock  at  the  office  of  the  hotel 
and  ask  to  be  directed  to  the  room  of  Hans 
Grumbach. 

"Now,  who  is  Hans  Grumbach?  I  never  knew 
or  heard  of  a  man  of  that  name." 

Nevertheless,  he  decided  to  go.  Certainly  this 
man  Grumbach  did  not  urge  him  without  some 
definite  purpose.  He  laid  down  his  pipe,  reached 
for  his  hat  and  coat — for  in  the  lodge  he  gen 
erally  went  about  in  his  shirt-sleeves — and  went 
over  to  the  hotel.  The  concierge,  who  knew 
Hermann,  conducted  him  to  room  ten  on  the  en- 
tresole.  Hermann  knocked.  A  voice  bade  him 
enter.  Ah,  it  was  the  German- American,  whose 
papers  had  puzzled  his  excellency. 

"You  wished  to  see  me,  Herr  Grumbach?" 

"Yes,"  said  Grumbach,  offering  a  chair. 

Hermann  accepted  the  courtesy  with  dignity. 


188          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

His  host  drew  up  another  chair  to  the  opposite 
side  of  the  reading- table.  The  light  overhead 
put  both  faces  in  a  semishadow. 

"You  are  Hermann  Breunner."  began  G  rum 
ba  ch. 

"Yes." 

"You  once  had  a  brother  named  Hans." 

Hermann  grew  rigid  in  his  chair.  "I  have  no 
brother,"  he  replied,  his  voice  dull  and  empty. 

"Perhaps  not  now,"  continued  Grumbach, 
"but  you  did  have." 

Hermann's  head  drooped.  "My  God,  yes,  I 
did  have  a  brother ;  but  he  was  a  scoundrel." 

Grumbach  lighted  a  cigar.  He  did  not  offer 
one  to  Hermann,  who  would  have  refused  it. 

"Perhaps  he  was  a  scoundrel.  He  is — dead !" 
softly. 

"God's  will  be  done!"  But  Hermann's  face 
turned  lighter. 

"As  a  boy  he  loved  you." 

"And  did  I  not  love  him?"  said  Hermann 
fiercely.  "Did  I  not  worship  that  boy,  who  was 
to  me  more  like  a  son  than  a  brother?  Had  not 
all  the  brothers  and  sisters  died  but  he?  But 
you — who  are  you  to  recall  these  things  ?" 


THE    SOCIALISTS  189 

"I  knew  your  brother ;  I  knew  him  well.  He 
was  not  a  scoundrel;  only  weak.  He  went  to 
America  and  became  successful  in  business.  He 
fought  with  the  North  in  the  war.  He  was  not 
a  coward ;  he  did  his  fighting  bravely  and  honor- 
ably." 

"Oh,  no ;  Hans  could  never  have  been  a  cow 
ard;  even  his  villainy  required  courage.  But 
go  on." 

"He  died  facing  the  enemy,  and  his  last  words 
were  of  you.  He  begged  your  forgiveness ;  he 
implored  that  you  forget  that  black  moment. 
He  was  young,  he  said;  and  they  offered  him 
a  thousand  crowns.  In  a  moment  of  despair  he 
fell." 

"Despair?  Did  he  confess  to  you  the  crime 
he  committed?" 

"Yes." 

"Did  he  tell  you  to  whom  he  sold  his  honor?" 

"That  he  never  knew.  A  Gipsy  from  the 
hills  came  to  him,  so  he  said." 

"From  Jugendheit?" 

"I  say  that  he  knew  nothing.  He  believed 
that  the  Gipsy  wanted  her  highness  to  hold  for 
ransom.  Hans  spoke  of  a  girl  called  Tekla." 


190          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"Tekla  ?  Ah,  yes ;  Hans  was  in  love  with  that 
doll-face." 

"Doll-face  or  not,  Hans  evidently  loved  her. 
She  jilted  him,  and  he  did  not  care  then  what 
happened.  His  one  desire  was  to  leave  Dreiberg. 
And  this  Gipsy  brought  the  means  and  the  op 
portunity." 

"Not  Jugendheit?" 

"Who  knows?  Hans  followed  the  band  of 
Gipsies  into  the  mountains.  The  real  horror  of 

r 

his  act  did  not  come  home  to  him  till  then.  Ah, 
the  remorse !  But  it  was  too  late.  They  dressed 
the  little .  one  in  rags.  But  when  I  ran  away 
from  them  I  took  her  little  shoes  and  cloak  and 
locket." 

Hermann  was  on  his  feet ! 

Grumbach  relighted  his  cigar  which  had  gone 
out.  The  smoke  wavered  about  his  face  and 
slowly  ascended.  His  eyes  were  as  bright  and 
glowing  as  coals.  He  waited.  He  had  made 
the  slip  without  premeditation ;  but  what  was 
done  was  done.  So  he  waited. 

Hermann  dropped  his  hands  on  the  table  and 
leaned  forward. 

"Is  it  you,  Hans,  and  I  did  not  know  you  ?" 


THE    SOCIALISTS          191 

«It  is  I,  brother." 

"My  God!"  Hermann  sank  down  weakly. 
The  ceiling  spun  and  the  gaslight  separated  it 
self  into  a  hundred  flames.  "You  said  he  was 
dead!" 

"So  I  am,  to  the  world,  to  you,  and  to  all  who 
knew  me,"  quietly. 

"Why  have  you  returned?" 

Hans  shrugged.  "I  don't  know.  Perhaps  I 
am  a  fool ;  perhaps  I  am  willing  to  pay  the  pen 
alty  of  my  crime.  At  least  that  was  uppermost 
in  my  mind  till  I  learned  that  her  highness  had 
been  found." 

"Hans,  Hans,  the  duke  has  sworn  to  hang 
you!" 

Hans  laughed.  "The  rope  is  not  made  that 
will  fit  my  neck.  Will  you  denounce  me, 
brother?" 

"I  ?"    Hermann  shrank  back  in  horror. 

"Why  not?  Five  thousand  crowns  still  hang 
over  me." 

"Blood-money  for  me?    No,  Hans!" 

"Besides,  I  have  made  a  will.  At  my  death 
you  will  be  rich." 

"Rich?" 


192          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"Yes,  Hermann.  I  am  worth  two  hundred 
thousand  crowns." 

Hermann  breathed  with  effort.  So  many 
things  had  beaten  upon  his  brain  in  the  past 
ten  minutes  that  he  was  dazed.  His  brother 
Hans  alive  and  here,  and  rich  ? 

"But  riches  are  not  everything." 

"Sometimes  they  are  little  enough,"  Hans 
agreed. 

"Why  did  you  do  it?"  Hermann's  voice  was 
full  of  agony. 

"Have  I  not  told  you,  Hermann?  There  is 
nothing  more  to  be  added."  Then,  with  rising 
passion:  "Nothing  more,  now  that  my  heart  is 
blistered  and  scarred  with  regret  and  remorse. 
God  knows  that  I  have  repented  and  repented. 
I  went  to  war  because  I  wanted  to  be  killed. 
They  shot  me  here,  and  here,  and  here,  and  this 
saber-cut  would  have  split  the  skull  of  any  other 
man.  But  it  was  willed  that  I  should  come  back 
here." 

"My  poor  brother!  You  must  fly  from  here 
at  once !" 

"From  what?"  tranquilly. 

"The  chancellor  is  suspicious." 


THE    SOCIALISTS  193 

"I  know  that.  But  since  you,  my  brother, 
failed  to  identify  me,  certainly  his  excellency 
will  not.  I  shall  make  no  slip  as  in  your  case. 
And  you  will  not  betray  me  when  I  tell  you  that 
I  have  returned  principally  to  find  out  whence 
came  those  thousand  crowns." 

"Ah !  Find  that  out,  Hans ;  yes,  yes !"  Her 
mann  began  to  look  more  like  himself.  "But 
what  was  your  part?" 

"Mine?  I  was  to  tell  where  her  highness  and 
her  nurse  were  to  be  at  a  certain  hour  of  the 
day.  Nothing  more  was  necessary.  My  run 
ning  away  was  the  expression  of  my  guilt; 
otherwise  they  would  never  have  connected  me 
with  the  abduction." 

"Have  you  any  suspicions?" 

"None.  And  remember,  you  must  not  know 
me,  Hermann,  no  matter  where  we  meet.  I  am 
sleepy."  Hans  rose. 

And  this,  thought  Hermann,  his  bewilderment 
gaining  life  once  more,  and  this  calm,  unruffled 
man,  whose  hair  was  whiter  than  his  own,  a  vet 
eran  of  the  bloodiest  civil  war  in  history,  this 
prosperous  mechanic,  was  his  little  brother 
Hans! 


194          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"Hans,  have  you  no  other  greeting?"  Her 
mann  asked,  spreading  out  his  arms. 

The  wanderer's  face  beamed ;  and  the  brothers 
embraced. 

"You  forgive  me,  then,  Hermann  ?" 

"Must  I  not,  little  Hans?  You  are  all  that 
is  left  me  of  the  blood.  True,  I  swore  that  if 
ever  I  saw  you  again  I  should  curse  you." 

The  two  stood  back  from  each  other,  but  with 
arms  still  entwined. 

"Perhaps,  Hans,  I  did  not  watch  you  closely 
enough  in  those  days." 

"And  what  has  become  of  the  principal 
cause?" 

"The  cause?" 

"Tekla." 

"Bah !  She  is  fat  and  homely  and  the  mother 
of  seven  squalling  children." 

"What  a  world !  To  think  that  Tekla  should 
be  at  the  bottom  of  all  this  tangle !  What  irony ! 
I  ruin  my  life,  I  break  the  heart  of  the  grand 
duke,  I  nearly  cause  war  between  two  friendly 
states — why?  Tekla,  now  fat  and  homely  and 
the  mother  of  seven,  would  not  marry  me.  The 
3evil  rides  strange  horses." 


THE    SOCIALISTS          195 

"Good  night,  Hans." 

"Good  night,  Hermann,  and  God  bless  you 
for  your  forgiveness.  Always  come  at  night  if 
you  wish  to  see  me,  but  do  not  come  often ;  they 
might  remark  it." 

A  rap  on  the  door  startled  them.  Hans,  a 
finger  of  warning  on  his  lips,  opened  the  door, 
Carmichael  stood  outside. 

"Ah,  Captain!"  Hans  took  Carmichael  by 
the  hand  and  drew  him  into  the  room. 

Carmichael,  observing  Hermann,  was  rather 
confused  as  to  what  to  do. 

"Good  evening,  Hermann,"  he  said. 

"Good  evening,  Herr  Carmichael." 

Hermann  passed  into  the  hall  and  softly  closed 
the  door  after  him.  It  was  better  that  the  Amer 
ican  should  not  see  the  emotion  which  still  illu 
mined  his  face. 

"What's  the  good  word,  Captain?"  inquired 
Hans. 

Carmichael  put  in  a  counter-query:  "What 
was  your  brother  doing  here?" 

"I  have  told  him  who  I  am." 

"Was  it  wise?" 

"Hermann  sleeps  soundly ;  he  will  talk  neither 


196          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

in  his  sleep  nor  in  his  waking  hours.  He  has 
forgiven  me." 

"For  what?"  thoughtlessly. 

"The  time  for  explanations  has  not  yet  come, 
Captain." 

"Pardon  me,  Grumbach;  I  was  not  thinking. 
But  I  came  to  bring  you  the  invitation  to  the 
military  ball." 

The  broad  white  envelope,  emblazoned  with 
the  royal  arms,  fascinated  Hans,  not  by  its  re 
splendency,  but  by  the  possibilities  which  it  af 
forded. 

"Thank  you ;  it  was  very  good  of  you." 

"It  was  a  pleasure,  comrade.  What  do  you 
say  to  an  hour  or  two  at  the  Black  Eagle  ?  We'll 
drown  our  sorrows  together." 

"Have  you  any  sorrows,  Captain?" 

"Who  hasn't?  Life  is  a  patchwork  with  the 
rounding-out  pieces  always  missing.  Come 
along.  I'm  lonesome  to-night." 

"So  am  I,"  said  Hans. 

The  Black  Eagle  was  lively  as  usual;  and 
there  were  some  familiar  faces.  The  vintner 
was  there  and  so  was  Gretchen.  Carmichael 
hailed  her. 


THE    SOCIALISTS          197 

"This  is  my  last  night  here,  Herr  Carmi- 
chael,"  she  said. 

"Somebody  has  left  you  a  fortune?"  There 
was  a  jest  in  Carmichael's  eyes. 

"Yes,"  replied  Gretchen,  her  lips  unsmiling. 
"The  poor  lady  who  lived  on  the  top  floor  of 
my  grandmother's  house  was  rich.  She  left  me 
a  thousand  crowns." 

Carmichael  and  Grumbach:  "A  thousand 
crowns !" 

"And  what  will  you  do  with  all  that  money?" 
asked  Hans. 

"I  am  going  to  study  music." 

"I  thought  you  were  going  to  be  married 
soon,"  said  Carmichael. 

"Surely.  But  that  will  not  hinder.  I  shall 
have  enough  for  two."  Gretchen  saw  no  reason 
why  she  should  tell  them  of  the  princess'  gener 
osity. 

"But  how  does  he  take  it?"  asked  Carmichael, 
with  a  motion  of  his  head  toward  the  vintner, 
half  hidden  behind  a  newspaper. 

"He  doesn't  like  the  idea  at  all.  But  the  Herr 
Direktor  says  that  I  am  a  singer,  and  that  some 
day  I  shall  be  rich  and  famous." 


198          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"When  that  day  comes  I  shall  be  there  with 
many  a  brava !" 

The  vintner,  who  sat  near  enough  to  catch  a 
bit  of  the  conversation,  scowled  over  the  top  of 
his  paper.  Carmichael  eyed  him  mischievously. 
Gretchen  picked  up  her  coppers  and  went 
away. 

"A  beautiful  girl,"  said  Hans  abstractedly. 
"She  might  be  Hebe  with  no  trouble  at  all." 

Carmichael  admired  Hans.  There  was  always 
some  new  phase  in  the  character  of  this  quiet  and 
unassuming  German.  A  plumber  who  was  fa 
miliar  with  the  classics  was  not  an  ordinary  per 
son.  He  raised  his  stein  and  Hans  extended  his. 
After  that  they  smoked,  with  a  word  or  two  oc 
casionally  in  comment. 

At  that  day  there  was  only  one  newspaper  in 
Dreiberg.  It  was  a  dry  and  solid  sheet,  of  four 
pages,  devoted  to  court  news,  sciences,  and  ag 
riculture.  The  vintner  presently  smoothed  down 
the  journal,  opened  his  knife,  and  cut  out  a 
paragraph.  Carmichael,  following  his  move 
ments  slyly,  wondered  what  he  had  seen  to  in 
terest  him  to  the  point  of  preservation.  The 
vintner  crushed  the  remains  of  the  sheet  into  a 


THE    SOCIALISTS  199 

ball  and  dropped  it  to  the  floor.  Then  he  finished 
his  beer,  rose,  and  proceeded  toward  the  stairs 
leading  to  the  rathskeller  below.  Down  these 
he  disappeared. 

An  idea  came  to  Carmichael.  He  called  a 
waitress  and  asked  her  to  bring  a  copy  of  that 
day's  paper.  Meantime  he  recovered  the  vint 
ner's  paper,  and  when  he  finally  put  the  two  to 
gether,  it  was  a  simple  matter  to  replace  the 
missing  cutting.  Grumbach  showed  a  mild  in 
terest  over  the  procedure. 

"Why  do  you  do  that,  Captain  ?" 

"A  little  idea  I  have;  it  may  not  amount  to 
anything."  But  the  American  was  puzzled  over 
the  cutting.  There  were  two  sides  to  it:  which 
had  interested  the  vintner?  "Do  you  care  for 
another  beer?" 

"No,  I  am  tired  and  sleepy,  Captain." 

"All  right ;  we'll  go  back  to  the  hotel.  There 
is  nothing  going  on  here  to-night." 

But  Carmichael  was  mistaken  for  once. 

A  little  time  later  Herr  Goldberg  harangued 
his  fellow  socialists  bitterly.  Gretchen's  business 
in  this  society  was  to  serve.  They  had  selected 
her  because  they  knew  that  she  inclined  toward 


200          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

the  propaganda.  Few  spoke  to  her,  outside  of 
giving  orders,  and  then  kindly. 

The  rathskeller  had  several  windows  and  doors. 
These  led  to  the  Blergarten,  to  the  wine-cellar, 
and  to  an  alley  which  had  no  opening  on  the 
street.  The  police  had  as  yet  never  arrested  any 
body  ;  but  several  times  the  police  had  dispersed 
Herr  Goldberg  and  his  disciples  on  account  of 
the  noise.  The  window  which  led  to  the  blind 
alley  was  six  feet  from  the  floor,  twice  as  broad 
as  it  was  high,  and  unbarred.  Under  this  win 
dow  sat  the  vintner.  He  was  a  probationer,  a 
novitiate;  this  was  his  second  attendance.  He 
liked  to  sit  in  the  shadow  and  smile  at  Herr  Gold 
berg's  philosophy,  which,  summed  up  briefly, 
meant  that  the  rich  should  divide  with  the  poor 
and  that  the  poor  should  hang  on  to  what  they 
had  or  got.  It  may  have  never  occurred  to  Herr 
Goldberg  that  the  poor  were  generally  poor  be 
cause  of  their  incapabilities,  their  ignorance,  and 
incompetence.  To-night,  however,  there  were 
variety  and  spice  with  his  Jeremiad. 

"Brothers,  shall  this  thing  take  place?  Shall 
the  daughter  of  Ehrenstein  become  Jugendheit's 
vassal  ?  Oh,  how  we  have  fallen !  Where  is  the 


THE    SOCIALISTS          201 

grand  duke's  pride  we  have  heard  so  much  about  ? 
Are  we,  then,  afraid  of  Jugendheit?" 

"No!"  roared  his  auditors,  banging  their 
steins  and  tankards.  The  vintner  joined  the 
demonstration,  banging  his  stein  as  lustily  as  the 
next  one. 

"Have  you  thought  what  this  marriage  will 
cost  us  in  taxes  ?" 

"What?" 

"Thousands  of  crowns,  thousands !  Do  we  not 
always  pay  for  the  luxuries  of  the  rich?  Do  not 
their  pleasures  grind  us  so  much  deeper  into  the 
dirt?  Yes,  we  are  the  corn  they  grind.  And 
shall  we  submit,  like  the  dogs  in  Flanders,  to  be 
come  beasts  of  burden?" 

"No,  no!" 

"I  have  a  plan,  brothers ;  it  will  show  the  duke 
to  what  desperation  he  has  driven  us  at  last.  We 
will  mob  the  Jugendheit  embassy  on  the  day  of 
the  wedding ;  we  will  tear  it  apart,  brick  by  brick, 
stone  by  stone." 

"Hurrah!"  cried  the  noisy  ones.  They  liked 
talk  of  this  order.  They  knew  it  was  only  here 
that  great  things  happened,  the  division  of  riches 
and  mob-rule.  Beer  was  cheaper  by  the  keg. 


202          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

The  noise  subsided.    Gretchen  spoke. 

"Her  serene  highness  will  not  marry  the  king 
of  Jugendheit." 

Every  head  swung  round  in  her  direction. 

"What  is  that  you  say?"  demanded  Herr 
Goldberg. 

Gretchen  repeated  her  statement.  It  was  the 
first  time  she  had  ever  raised  her  voice  in  the 
councils. 

"Oh,  indeed !"  said  Goldberg,  bowing  with  rid 
icule  :  "Since  when  did  her  serene  highness  make 
you  her  confidante?" 

"Her  serene  highness  told  me  so  herself." 
Gretchen's  eyes,  which  had  held  only  mildness 
and  good-will,  now  sparkled  with  contempt. 

A  roar  of  laughter  went  up,  for  the  majority 
of  them  thought  that  Gretchen  was  indulging  in 
a  little  pleasantry. 

"Ho-ho !  So  you  are  on  speaking  terms  with 
her  highness  ?"  Herr  Goldberg  laughed. 

"Is  there  anything  strange  in  this  fact?"  she 
asked,  keeping  her  tones  even. 

The  vintner  made  a  sign  to  her,  but  she  ig 
nored  it. 

"Strange?"  echoed  Herr  Goldberg,  becoming 


THE    SOCIALISTS  203 

furious  at  having  the  interest  in  himself  thus 
diverted.  "Since  when  did  goose-girls  and  bar 
maids  become  on  intimate  terms  with  her  serene 
highness  ?" 

Gretchen  pressed  the  vintner's  arm  to  hold 
him  in  his  chair. 

"Does  not  your  socialism  teach  that  we  are  all 
equal?" 

The  vintner  thumped  with  his  stein  in  ap 
proval,  and  others  imitated  him.  Goldberg  was 
no  ordinary  fool.  He  sidestepped  defeat  by  an 
assumption  of  frankness. 

"Tell  us  about  it.  If  I  have  spoken  harshly 
it  is  only  reasonable.  Tell  us  under  what  cir 
cumstance  you  met  her  highness  and  how  she 
happened  to  tell  you  this  very  important  news. 
Every  one  knows  that  this  marriage  is  to  take 
place." 

Gretchen  nodded.  "Nevertheless,  her  highness 
has  changed  her  mind."  And  she  recounted  pic 
turesquely  her  adventure  in  the  royal  gardens, 
and  all  hung  on  her  words  in  a  kind  of  maze.  It 
was  all  very  well  to  shout,  "Down  with  royalty !" 
it  was  another  matter  to  converse  and  shake 
hands  with  it. 


204          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"Hurrah!"  shouted  the  vintner.  "Long  live 
her  highness !  Down  with  Jugendheit !" 

There  was  a  fine  chorus. 

And  there  was  a  fine  tableau  not  down  on  the 
evening's  program.  A  police  officer  and  three 
assistants  came  down  the  stairs  quietly. 

"Let  no  one  leave  this  room !"  the  officer  said 
sternly. 

The  dramatic  pause  was  succeeded  by  a  babel 
of  confusion.  Chairs  scraped,  steins  clattered, 
and  the  would-be  liberators  huddled  together  like 
so  many  sheep  rounded  up  by  a  shepherd-dog. 

"Ho,  there !    Stop  him,  you !" 

It  was  the  vintner  who  caused  this  cry;  and 
the  agility  with  which  he  scrambled  through  the 
window  into  the  blind  alley  was  an  inspiration. 

"After  him !"  yelled  the  officer.  "He  is  prob 
ably  the  one  rare  bird  in  the  bunch." 

But  they  searched  in  vain. 

Gretchen  stared  ruefully  at  the  blank  window. 
Somehow  this  flight  pained  her ;  somehow  it  gave 
her  the  heartache  to  learn  that  her  idol  was 
afraid  of  such  a  thing  as  a  policeman. 

"Out  into  the  street,  every  mother's  son  of 
you !"  cried  the  officer  angrily  to  the  quaking  so- 


THE    SOCIALISTS          205 

cialists.  "This  is  your  last  warning,  Goldberg. 
The  next  time  you  go  to  prison  for  seditious 
teachings.  Out  with  you !" 

The  socialists  could  not  have  emptied  the  cellar 
any  quicker  had  there  been  a  fire. 

Gretchen  alone  remained.  It  was  her  duty  to 
carry  the  steins  up  to  the  bar.  The  officer,  rather 
thorough  for  his  kind,  studied  the  floor  under  the 
window.  He  found  a  cutting  from  a  newspaper. 
This  interested  him. 

"Do  you  know  who  this  fellow  was?"  with  a 
jerk  of  his  head  toward  the  window. 

"He  is  Leopold  Dietrich,  a  vintner,  and  we  are 
soon  to  be  married."  There  was  a  flaw  in  the 
usual  sweetness  of  her  voice. 

"So?    What  made  him  run  away  like  this?" 

"He  is  new  to  Dreiberg.  Perhaps  he  thought 
you  were  going  to  arrest  every  one.  Oh,  he  has 
done  nothing  wrong ;  I  am  sure  of  that." 

"There  is  one  way  to  prove  it." 

"And  what  is  that?" 

"Ask  him  if  he  is  not  a  spy  from  Jugendheit," 
roughly. 

The  steins  clicked  crisply  in  Gretchen's  arms ; 
one  of  them  fell  and  broke  at  her  feet. 


CHAPTER    XII 

LOVE'S  DOUBTS 

GRETCHEN,  troubled  in  heart  and  mind 
over  the  strange  event  of  the  night,  walked 
slowly  home,  her  head  inclined,  her  arms  swing 
ing  listlessly  at  her  side.  A  spy,  this  man  to 
whom  she  had  joyously  given  the  flower  of  her 
heart  and  soul?  There  was  some  mistake;  there 
must  be  some  mistake.  She  shivered;  for  the 
word  spy  carried  with  it  all  there  was  in  deceit, 
treachery,  cunning.  In  war  time  she  knew  that 
spies  were  necessary,  that  brave  men  took  peril 
ous  hazards,  without  reward,  without  renown; 
but  in  times  of  peace  nothing  but  opprobrium 
covered  the  word.  A  political  scavenger,  the 
man  she  loved?  No;  there  was  some  mistake. 
The  bit  of  newspaper  cutting  did  not  worry  her. 
Anybody  might  have  been  curious  about  the  do 
ings  of  the  king  of  Jugendheit  and  his  uncle  the 
prince  regent.  Because  the  king  hunted  in  Ba- 
206 


LOVE'S    DOUBTS  207 

varia  with  the  crown  prince,  and  his  uncle  con 
ferred  with  the  king  of  Prussia  in  Berlin,  it  did 
not  necessarily  follow  that  Leopold  Dietrich  was 
a  spy.  Gretchen  was  just.  She  would  hear  his 
defense  before  she  judged  him. 

Marking  the  first  crook  in  the  Krumerweg  was 
an  ancient  lamp  hanging  from  the  side  of  the 
wall.  The  candle  in  this  lamp  burned  night  and 
day,  through  winter's  storms  and  summer's 
balms.  The  flame  dimmed  and  glowed,  a  kindly 
reminder  in  the  gloom.  It  was  a  shrine  to  the 
Virgin  Mary ;  and  before  this  Gretchen  paused, 
offering  a  silent  prayer  that  the  Holy  Mother 
preserve  this  dream  of  hers. 

A  footstep  from  behind  caused  her  to  start. 
The  vintner  took  her  roughly  in  his  arms  and 
kissed  her  many  times. 

Her  heart  shook  within  her,  but  she  did  not 
surrender  her  purpose  under  these  caresses.  She 
freed  herself  energetically  and  stood  a  little 
away  from  him,  panting  and  star-eyed. 

"Gretchen?" 

She  did  not  speak. 

"What  is  it?" 

"You  ask?" 


208          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"Was  it  a  crime,  then,  to  jump  out  of  the 
window?"  He  laughed. 

Gretchen's  face  grew  sterner.  "Were  you 
afraid?" 

"For  a  moment.  I  have  never  run  afoul  the 
police.  I  thought  perhaps  we  were  all  to  be  ar 
rested." 

"Well,  and  what  then?" 

"What  then?  Uncomfortable  quarters  in 
stone  rooms.  I  preferred  discretion  to  valor." 

"Perhaps  you  did  not  care  to  have  the  police 
ask  you  questions?" 

"What  is  all  this  about?"  He  pulled  her  to 
ward  him  so  that  he  could  look  into  her  eyes. 
"What  is  the  matter?  Answer !" 

"Are  you  not  a  spy  from  Jugendheit  ?"  thinly. 

He  flung  aside  her  hand.  "So !  The  first  doubt 
that  enters  your  ear  finds  harbor  there.  A  spy 
from  Jugendheit;  that  is  a  police  suggestion, 
and  you  believed  it !" 

"Do  you  deny  it?"  Gretchen  was  not  cowed 
by  his  anger,  which  her  own  evenly  matched. 

"Yes,"  proudly,  snatching  his  hat  from  his 
head  and  throwing  it  violently  at  her  feet ;  "yes, 
I  deny  it.  I  am  not  a  spy  from  any  country ;  I 


LOVE'S    DOUBTS  209 

have  not  sold  the  right  to  look  any  man  in  the 
eye." 

"I  have  asked  you  many  questions,"  she  re 
plied,  "but  you  are  always  laughing.  It  is  a 
pleasant  way  to  avoid  answering.  I  have  given 
you  my  heart  and  all  its  secrets.  Have  you 
opened  yours  as  frankly?" 

To  meet  anger  with  logic  and  sense  is  the  sim 
plest  way  to  overcome  it.  The  vintner  saw  him 
self  at  bay.  He  stooped  to  recover  his  hat,  not 
so  much  to  regain  it  but  to  steal  time  to  conjure 
up  some  way  out. 

"Gretchen,  here  under  the  Virgin  I  swear  to 
you  that  I  love  you  as  a  man  loves  but  once  in 
his  life.  If  I  were  rich,  I  would  gladly  fling  these 
riches  to  the  wind  for  your  sake.  If  I  were  a 
king,  I'd  barter  my  crown  for  a  smile  and  a  kiss. 
I  have  done  no  wrong;  I  have  committed  no 
crime.  But  you  must  have  proof ;  so  be  it.  We 
will  go  together  to  the  police-bureau  and  settle 
this  doubt  once  and  for  all." 

"When  ?"  Gretchen's  heart  was  growing  warm 
again. 

"Now,  to-night,  while  they  are  hunting  for 
me." 


210          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"Forgive  me !"  brokenly. 

"Come !" 

"No,  Leopold,  this  test  is  not  necessary." 

"I  insist.  This  thing  must  be  righted  pub- 
licly." 

"And  I  was  thinking  that  the  man  I  loved  was 
a  coward !" 

"I  am  braver  than  you  dream,  Gretchen." 
And  in  truth  he  was,  for  he  was  about  to  set 
forth  for  the  lion's  den,  and  only  amazing  clev 
erness  could  extricate  him.  Man  never  enters 
upon  the  foolhardy  unless  it  be  to  dazzle  a  wom 
an.  And  the  vintner's  love  for  Gretchen  was  no 
passing  thing.  "Let  us  hurry ;  it  is  growing 
late.  They  will  be  shutting  off  the  lights  before 
we  return." 

The  police-bureau  was  far  away,  but  the  dis 
tance  was  nothing  to  these  healthy  young  people. 
They  progressed  at  a  smart  pace  and  in  less  than 
twenty  minutes  they  arrived.  It  was  Gretchen 
who  drew  back  fearfully. 

"After  all,  will  it  not  be  foolish?"  she  sug 
gested. 

"They  will  be  searching  for  me,"  he  answered. 
"It  will  be  easier  if  I  present  myself.  It  will 


LOVE'S   DOUBTS 

bear  testimony  that  I  am  innocent  of  any 
wrong." 

"I  will  go  in  with  you,"  determinedly. 

The  police  officer,  or,  to  be  more  particular, 
the  sub-chief  of  the  bureau,  received  them  with 
ill-concealed  surprise. 

"I  have  learned  that  you  are  seeking  me,"  said 
the  vintner,  taking  off  his  cap.  His  yellow  curls 
waved  about  his  forehead  in  moist  profusion. 

Immediately  the  sub-chief  did  not  know  what 
to  say.  This  was  out  of  the  ordinary,  conspicu 
ously  so.  There  was  little  precedent  by  which  to 
act  in  a  case  like  this.  So  in  order  to  appear  that 
nothing  could  destroy  his  official  poise,  he  let  the 
two  stand  before  his  desk  while  he  sorted  some 
papers. 

"You  are  not  a  native  of  Dreiberg,"  he  began. 

"No,  Herr;  I  am  from  Bavaria.  If  you  will 
look  into  your  records  you  will  find  that  my  pa 
pers  were  presented  two  or  three  weeks  ago." 

"Let  me  see  them." 

The  vintner's  passports  were  produced.  The 
sub-chief  compared  them  to  the  corresponding 
number  in  his  book.  There  was  nothing  wrong 
about  them. 


212          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"I  do  not  recollect  seeing  you  here  before." 

"It  was  one  of  your  assistants  who  originally 
went  over  the  papers." 

"What  is  your  business?" 

"I  am  a  vintner  by  trade,  Herr." 

"And  are  there  not  plenty  of  vineyards  in 
Bavaria?" 

"We  vintners,"  with  an  easy  gesture,  "are  of 
a  roving  disposition.  I  have  been  all  along  the 
Rhine  and  the  Moselle.  I  prefer  grapes  to  hops." 

"But  why  Dreiberg?  The  best  vineyards  are 
south." 

"Who  can  say  where  we  shall  go  next?  Drei 
berg  seemed  good  enough  for  me,"  with  a  shy 
glance  at  Gretchen. 

"Why  did  you  jump  out  of  the  window?" 

"I  was  frightened  at  first,  Herr.  I  did  not 
know  that  you  merely  dispersed  meetings.  I  be 
lieved  that  we  were  all  to  be  arrested.  Such 
measures  are  in  force  in  Munich." 

"You  accused  him  of  being  a  Jugendheit 
spy,"  broke  in  Gretchen,  who  was  growing  im 
patient  under  these  questions,  which  seemed  to 
go  nowhere  in  particular. 

"You  be  silent,"  warned  the  sub-chief. 


LOVE'S    DOUBTS  213 

"I  am  here  because  of  that  accusation,"  said 
the  vintner. 

"What  have  you  to  say?" 

"I  deny  it." 

"That  is  easy  to  do.    But  can  you  prove  it?" 

"It  is  for  you  to  prove,  Herr." 

"Read  this." 

It  was  the  cutting.  The  vintner  read  it,  his 
brows  drawn  together  in  a  puzzled  frown.  He 
turned  the  slip  over  carelessly.  The  sub-chief's 
eyes  bored  into  him  like  gimlets. 

"I  can  make  nothing  of  this,  Herr.  When  I 
cut  this  out  of  the  paper  it  was  to  preserve  the 
notice  on  the  other  side."  The  vintner  returned 
the  cutting. 

The  sub-chief  read  aloud : 

"Vintners  and  presses  and  pruners  wanted  for 
the  season.  Find  and  liberal  compensation.  Ap 
ply,  Holtz." 

Gretchen  laughed  joyously;  the  vintner 
grinned ;  the  sub-chief  swore  under  his  breath. 

"The  devil  fly  away  with  you  both !"  he  cried, 
making  the  best  of  his  chagrin.  "And  when  you 
marry,  don't  invite  me  to  the  wedding." 


214          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

After  they  had  gone,  however,  he  called  for  an 
assistant. 

"Did  you  see  that  young  vintner?" 

"Yes." 

"Follow  him,  night  and  day.  Find  out  where 
he  lives  and  what  he  does ;  and  ransack  his  room 
if  possible.  He  is  either  an  innocent  man  or  a 
sleek  rascal.  Report  to  me  this  time  each  night." 

"And  the  girl?" 

"Don't  trouble  about  her.  She  is  under  the 
patronage  of  her  serene  highness.  She's  as  right 
as  a  die.  It's  the  man.  He  was  too  easy;  he 
didn't  show  enough  concern.  An  ordinary  vint 
ner  would  have  been  frightened.  This  fellow 
smiled." 

"And  if  I  find  out  anything  suspicious  ?" 

"Arrest  him  out  of  hand  and  bring  him  here 
at  once." 

Alone  once  more  the  sub-chief  studied  the  cut 
ting  with  official  thoroughness.  He  was  finally 
convinced,  by  the  regularity  of  the  line  on  the 
printed  side  as  compared  with  the  irregularity  of 
the  line  on  the  advertising  side,  that  the  vintner 
had  lied.  And  yet  there  was  no  proof  that  he 
had. 


LOVE'S    DOUBTS  215 

"This  young  fellow  will  go  far,"  he  mused, 
with  reluctant  admiration. 

On  reaching  the  street  Gretchen  gave  rein  to 
her  laughter.  What  promised  to  be  a  tragedy 
was  only  a  farce.  The  vintner  laughed,  too,  but 
Momus  would  have  criticized  his  laughter. 

The  night  was  not  done  yet;  there  were  still 
some  more  surprises  in  store  for  the  vintner.  As 
they  turned  into  the  Krumerweg  they  almost  ran 
into  Carmichael.  What  was  the  American  con 
sul  doing  in  this  part  of  the  town,  so  near  mid 
night?  Carmichael  recognized  them  both.  He 
lifted  his  hat,  but  the  vintner  cavalierly  refused 
to  respond. 

"Herr  Carmichael!"  said  Gretchen.  "And 
what  are  you  doing  here  this  time  of  the  night  ?" 

"I  have  been  on  a  fool's  errand,"  urbanely. 

"And  who  sent  you  ?" 

"The  god  of  fools  himself,  I  guess.  I  am 
looking  for  a  kind  of  ghost,  a  specter  in  black 
that  leaves  the  palace  early  in  the  evening  and 
returns  late,  whose  destination  has  invariably 
been  forty  Krumerweg." 

The  vintner  started. 

"My  house?"  cried  Gretchen. 


216          THE    GOOSE   GIRL 

"Yours?  Perhaps  you  can  dispel  this  phan 
tom?"  said  Carmichael. 

Gretchen  was  silent. 

"Oh !    You  know  something.    Who  is  she  ?" 

"A  lady  who  comes  on  a  charitable  errand. 
But  now  she  will  come  no  more." 

"And  why  not?" 

"The  object  of  her  visits  is  gone,"  Gretchen 
answered  sadly. 

"My  luck!"  exclaimed  Carmichael  ruefully. 
"I  am  always  building  houses  of  cards.  I  don't 
suppose  I  shall  ever  reform." 

"Are  you  not  afraid  to  walk  about  in  this  part 
of  the  town  so  late  ?"  put  in  the  vintner,  who  was 
impatient  to  be  gone. 

"Afraid?  Of  what?  Thieves?  Bah,  my  little 
man,  I  carry  a  sword-stick,  and  moreover  I  know 
how  to  use  it  tolerably  well.  Good  night."  And 
he  swung  along  easily,  whistling  an  air  from 
The  Barber  of  Seville. 

The  insolence  in  Carmichael's  tone  set  the  vint 
ner's  ears  a-burning,  but  he  swallowed  his  wrath. 

"I  like  him,"  Gretchen  declared,  as  she  stopped 
before  the  house. 

"Why?"  jealously. 


217 

"Because  he  is  always  like  that;  pleasant, 
never  ruffled,  kindly.  He  will  make  a  good  hus 
band  to  some  woman." 

The  vintner  shrugged.  He  was  not  patient 
to-night. 

"Who  is  this  mysterious  woman?" 

"I  am  not  free  to  tell  you." 

"Oh!" 

"Leopold,  what  is  the  matter  with  you  to 
night?  You  act  like  a  boy." 

"Perhaps  the  police  muddle  is  to  blame.  Be 
sides,  every  time  I  see  this  man  Carmichael  I 
feel  like  a  baited  dog." 

"In  Heaven's  name,  why?" 

"Nothing  that  I  can  remember.  But  I  have 
asked  you  a  question." 

"And  I  have  declined  to  answer  that  question. 
All  my  secrets  are  yours,  but  this  one  is  an 
other's." 

"Is  it  her  highness  ?" 

Gretchen  fingered  the  latch  suggestively. 

"I  am  wrong,  Gretchen ;  you  are  right.  Kiss 
me!" 

She  liked  the  tone;  she  liked  the  kisses,  too, 
though  they  hurt. 


218          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"Good  night,  my  man !"  she  whispered. 

"Good  night,  my  woman!  To-morrow  night 
at  eight." 

He  turned  and  ran  lightly  and  swiftly  up  the 
street.  Gretchen  remained  standing  in  the  door 
way  till  she  could  see  him  no  more.  Why  should 
he  run  like  that?  She  raised  the  latch  and  went 
inside. 

From  the  opposite  doorway  a  mountaineer,  a 
carter,  a  butcher,  and  a  baker  stepped  cautiously 
forth. 

"He  heard  something,"  said  the  mountaineer. 
"He  has  ears  like  a  rat  for  hearing.  What  a 
pretty  picture !"  cynically.  "All  the  world  loves 
a  lover — sometimes.  Touching  scene!" 

No  one  replied ;  no  one  was  expected  to  reply ; 
more  than  that,  no  one  cared  to  court  the  fury 
which  lay  thinly  disguised  in  the  mountaineer's 
tones. 

"To-morrow  night;  you  heard  what  he  said. 
I  am  growing  weary  of  this  play.  You  will  stop 
him  on  his  way  to  yonder  house.  A  closed  car 
riage  will  be  at  hand.  Before  he  enters,  remem 
ber.  She  watches  him  too  long  when  he  leaves. 
Fool!" 


LOVE'S    DOUBTS  219 

The  quartet  stole  along  in  the  darkness,  noise 
lessly  and  secretly. 

The  vintner  had  indeed  heard  something.  He 
knew  not  what  this  noise  was,  but  it  was  enough 
to  set  his  heels  to  flying.  A  phase  had  developed 
in  his  character  that  defied  analysis;  suspicion, 
suspicion  of  daylight,  of  night,  of  shadows  mov 
ing  by  walls,  of  footsteps  behind.  Only  a  little 
while  ago  he  had  walked  free-hearted  and  care 
less.  This  growing  habit  of  skulking  was  gall 
and  wormwood.  Once  in  his  room,  which  was  di 
rectly  over  the  office  of  the  American  consulate, 
he  fell  into  a  chair,  inert  and  breathless.  What 
a  night !  What  a  series  of  adventures ! 

"Only  a  month  ago  I  was  a  boy.  I  am  a  man 
now,  for  I  know  what  it  is  to  suffer.  Gretchen, 
dear  Gretchen,  I  am  a  black  scoundrel !  But  if  I 
break  your  heart  I  shall  break  my  own  along 
with  it.  I  wonder  how  much  longer  it  will  last. 
But  for  that  vintner's  notice  I  should  have  been 
lost." 

By  and  by  he  lighted  a  candle.  The  room  held 
a  cot,  a  table,  and  two  chairs.  The  vintner's 
wardrobe  consisted  of  a  small  pack  thrown  care 
lessly  into  a  corner.  Out  of  the  drawer  in  the 


220          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

table  he  took  several  papers  and  burned  them. 
The  ashes  he  cast  out  of  the  window.  He  knew 
something  about  police  methods;  they  were  by 
no  means  all  through  with  him.  Ah!  A  patch 
of  white  paper,  just  inside  the  door,  caught  his 
eye.  He  fetched  it  to  the  candle.  What  he  read 
forced  the  color  from  his  cheeks  and  his  hands 
were  touched  with  transient  palsy. 

"The  devil!  What  shall  I  do  nowr"  he  mut 
tered,  thoroughly  dismayed. 

What  indeed  should  he  do  ?  Which  way  should 
he  move?  How  long  had  he  been  in  Dreiberg? 
Ah,  that  would  be  rich !  What  a  joke !  It  would 
afford  him  a  smile  in  his  old  age.  Carmichael, 
Carmichael!  The  vintner  chuckled  softly  as  he 
scribbled  this  note : 

"If  Herr  Carmichael  would  learn  the  secret  of 
number  forty  Krumerweg,  let  him  attire  him 
self  as  a  vintner  and  be  in  the  Krumerweg  at 
eight  o'clock  to-night." 

"So  there  is  a  trap,  and  I  am  to  beware  of  a 
mountaineer,  a  carter,  a  butcher,  and  a  baker? 
Thanks,  Scharfenstein,  my  friend,  thanks !  You 
are  watching  over  me." 

He  blew  out  his  candle  and  went  to  bed. 


CHAPTER    XIII 

A    DAY    DREAM 

COLONEL  VON  WALLENSTEIN  curled 
his  mustaches.  It  was  a  happy  thought 
that  had  taken  him  into  the  Adlergasse.  This 
Gretchen  had  been  haunting  his  dreams,  and 
here  she  was,  coming  into  his  very  arms,  as  it 
were.  The  sidewalk  was  narrow.  Gretchen, 
casually  noting  that  an  officer  stood  in  the  way, 
sensibly  veered  into  the  road.  But  to  her  sur 
prise  the  soldier  left  the  sidewalk  and  planted 
himself  in  the  middle  of  the  road.  There  was  no 
mistaking  this  second  maneuver.  The  officer, 
whom  she  now  recognized,  was  bent  on  intercept 
ing  her.  She  stopped,  a  cold  fury  in  her  heart. 
To  make  sure,  she  essayed  to  go  round.  It  was 
of  no  use.  So  she  stopped  again. 

"Herr,"  she  said  quietly,  "I  wish  to  pass." 

"That  is  possible,  Gretchen." 

It  was  nine  o'clock  in  the  morning.  The  Ad 
lergasse  was  at  this  time  deserted. 


THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"Will  you  stand  aside  ?" 

"You  have  been  haunting  my  dreams, 
'Gretchen." 

"That  would  be  a  pity.    But  I  wish  to  pass." 

"Presently.  Do  you  know  that  you  are  the 
most  beautiful  being  in  all  Dreiberg?" 

"I  am  in  a  hurry,"  said  Gretchen. 

"There  is  plenty  of  time." 

"Not  to  listen  to  foolish  speeches." 

"I  am  not  going  to  let  you  pass  till  I  have  had 
a  kiss." 

"Ah!"  Battle  flamed  up  in  Gretchen's  eyes. 
Somewhere  in  the  past,  in  some  remote  age,  her 
forebears  had  been  men-at-arms  or  knights  in  the 
crusades. 

"You  are  very  hard  to  please.  Some  wom 
en—" 

"But  what  kind  of  women?"  bitingly.  "Not 
such  as  I  should  care  to  meet.  Will  you  let  me 
by  peacefully  ?" 

"After  the  toll,  after  the  toll !" 

Too  late  she  started  to  run.  He  laughed  and 
caught  hold  of  her.  Slowly  but  irresistibly  he 
drew  her  toward  his  heart.  The  dead-white  of 
her  face  should  have  warned  him.  With  a  su- 


A   DAY   DREAM  223 

preme  effort  she  freed  herself  and  struck  him 
across  the  face ;  and  there  was  a  man's  strength 
in  the  flat  of  her  hand.  Quick  as  a  flash  she 
whirled  round  and  ran  up  the  street,  he  hot  upon 
her  heels.  He  was  raging  now  with  pain  and 
chagrin.  The  one  hope  for  Gretchen  now  lay  in 
the  Black  Eagle ;  and  into  the  tavern  she  darted 
excitedly. 

"Frau  Bauer,"  she  cried,  gasping  as  much  in 
wrath  as  for  lack  of  breath,  "may  I  come  behind 
your  counter?" 

"To  be  sure,  child.    Whatever  is  the  matter  ?" 

Wallerstein's  entrance  was  answer  sufficient. 
His  hand,  held  against  his  stinging  cheek,  was 
telltale  enough  for  the  proprietress  of  the  Black 
Eagle. 

"Shame!"  she  cried.  She  knew  her  rights. 
She  was  not  afraid  to  speak  plainly  to  any  offi 
cer  in  the  duchy,  however  high  he  might  be 
placed. 

"I  can  not  get  at  you  there,  Gretchen,"  said 
the  colonel,  giving  to  his  voice  that  venom  which 
the  lady's  man  always  has  at  hand  when  thwarted 
in  his  gallantries.  "You  will  have  to  come 
hence  presently." 


THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"She  shall  stay  here  all  day,"  declared  Frau 
Bauer  decidedly. 

"I  can  wait."  The  colonel,  now  possessing 
two  smarts,  one  to  his  cheek  and  one  to  his  vanity, 
made  for  the  door.  But  there  was  a  bulk  in  the 
doorway  formidable  enough  to  be  worth  serious 
contemplation. 

"What  is  going  on  here,  little  goose-girl?" 
asked  the  grizzled  old  man,  folding  his  arms 
round  his  oak  staff. 

"Herr  Colonel  insulted  me." 

"Insulted  you  ?"  The  colonel  laughed  boister 
ously.  This  was  good ;  an  officer  insult  a  wench 
of  this  order !  "Out  of  the  way !"  he  snarled  at 
the  obstruction  in  the  doorway. 

"What  did  he  try  to  do  to  you,  Gretchen?" 

"He  tried  to  kiss  me !" 

"The  man  who  tries  to  kiss  a  woman  against 
her  will  is  always  at  heart  a  coward,"  said  the 
mountaineer. 

The  colonel  seized  the  old  man  by  the  shoulder 
to  push  him  aside.  The  other  never  so  much  as 
stirred.  He  put  out  one  of  his  arms  and  clasped 
the  colonel  in  such  a  manner  that  he  gasped.  He 
was  in  the  clutch  of  a  Carpathian  bear. 


ADAYDREAM 

"Well,  my  little  soldier?"  said  the  moun 
taineer,  his  voice  even  and  not  a  vein  showing  in 
his  neck. 

"I  will  kill  you  for  this !"  breathed  the  colonel 
heavily. 

"So?"  The  old  man  thrust  him  back  several 
feet,  without  any  visible  exertion.  He  let  his 
staff  slide  into  his  hand. 

The  moment  the  colonel  felt  himself  liberated, 
he  drew  his  saber  and  lunged  toward  his  assail 
ant.  There  was  murder  in  his  heart.  The  two 
women  screamed.  The  old  man  laughed.  He 
turned  the  thrust  with  his  staff.  The  colonel, 
throwing  caution  to  the  four  winds,  surrendered 
to  his  rage.  He  struck  again.  The  saber  rang 
against  the  oak.  This  dexterity  with  the  staff 
carried  no  warning  to  the  enraged  officer.  He 
struck  again  and  again.  Then  the  old  man 
struck  back.  The  pain  in  the  colonel's  arm  was 
excruciating.  His  saber  rattled  to  the  stone 
flooring.  Before  he  could  recover  the  weapon 
the  victor  had  put  his  foot  upon  it.  He  was  still 
smiling,  as  if  the  whole  affair  was  a  bit  of 
pastime. 

On  his  part  the  colonel's  blood  suddenly  cooled. 


226 

This  was  no  accident ;  this  meddling  peasant  had 
at  some  time  or  other  held  a  saber  in  his  hand 
and  knew  how  to  use  it  famously  well.  The  colo 
nel  realized  that  he  had  played  the  fool  nicely. 

"My  sword,"  he  demanded,  with  as  much  dig 
nity  as  he  could  muster. 

"Will  you  sheathe  it?"  the  old  man  asked 
mildly. 

"Since  it  is  of  no  particular  use,"  bitterly. 

"I  could  have  broken  it  half  a  dozen  times. 
Here,  take  it.  But  be  wise  in  the  future,  and 
draw  it  only  in  the  right." 

The  gall  was  bitter  on  the  colonel's  tongue, 
but  his  head  was  evenly  balanced  now.  He 
jammed  the  blade  into  the  scabbard. 

"I  should  like  a  word  or  two  with  you  outside," 
said  the  mountaineer. 

"To  what  purpose  ?" 

"To  a  good  one,  as  you  will  learn." 

The  two  of  them  went  out.  Gretchen,  over 
come,  fell  upon  Frau  Bauer's  neck  and  wept 
soundly.  The  whole  affair  had  been  so  sudden 
and  appalling. 

Outside  the  old  man  laid  his  hand  on  the  colo 
nel's  arm. 


ADAYDREAM 

"You  must  never  bother  her  again." 

"Must?" 

"The  very  word.  Listen,  and  do  not  be  a  fool 
because  you  have  some  authority  on  the  genera! 
staff.  You  are  Colonel  von  Wallenstein ;  you  are 
something  more  besides." 

"What  do  you  infer?" 

"I  infer  nothing.  Now  and  then  there  hap 
pens  strange  leakage  in  the  duke's  affairs.  The 
man  is  well  paid.  He  is  a  gambler,  and  one  is 
always  reasonably  certain  that  the  gambler  will 
be  wanting  money.  Do  you  begin  to  understand 
me,  or  must  I  be  more  explicit?" 

"Who  are  you?" 

"Who  I  am  is  of  no  present  consequence.  But 
I  know  who  and  what  you  are.  That  is  all-suf 
ficient.  If  you  behave  yourself  in  the  future, 
you  will  be  allowed  to  continue  in  prosperity. 
But  if  you  attempt  to  molest  that  girl  again 
and  I  hear  of  it,  there  will  be  no  more  gold  com 
ing  over  the  frontier  from  Jugendheit.  Now, 
do  you  understand?" 

"Yes."  The  colonel  experienced  a  weakness 
in  the  knees. 

"Go.     But  be  advised  and  walk  circumspect- 


228          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

ly."  The  speaker  showed  his  back  insolently, 
and  reentered  the  Black  Eagle. 

The  colonel,  pale  and  distrait,  stared  at  the 
empty  door ;  and  he  saw  in  his  mind's  eye  a  squad 
of  soldiers,  a  wall,  a  single  volley,  and  a  dishon 
ored  roll  of  earth.  Military  informers  were 
given  short  shrift.  It  was  not  a  matter  of  tear 
ing  off  orders  and  buttons ;  it  was  death.  Who 
was  this  terrible  old  man,  with  the  mind  of  a  ser 
pent  and  the  strength  of  a  bear?  The  colonel 
went  to  the  barracks,  but  his  usual  debonair 
was  missing. 

"I  am  going  into  the  garden,  Gretchen.  Bring 
me  a  stein  of  brown."  The  mountaineer  smiled 
genially. 

"But  I  am  not  working  here  any  more,"  said 
Gretchen. 

"No?" 

"She  has  had  a  fortune  left  her,"  said  Frau 
Bauer. 

"Well,  well !"  The  mountaineer  seemed  vastly 
pleased.  "And  how  much  is  this  fortune?" 

"Two  thousand  crowns."  Gretchen  was  not 
sure,  but  to  her  there  always  seemed  to  be  a  se 
cret  laughter  behind  those  clear  eyes. 


A   DAY    DREAM  £29 

"Handsome !  And  what  will  you  do  now?" 

"She  is  to  study  for  the  opera." 

"Did  I  not  prophesy  it?"  he  cried  jubilantly. 
"Did  I  not  say  that  some  impresario  would  dis 
cover  you  and  make  your  fortune?" 

"There  is  plenty  of  work  ahead,"  said  Gretch- 
en  sagely. 

"Always,  no  matter  what  we  strive  for.  But 
a  brave  heart  and  a  cheerful  smile  carry  you 
half-way  up  the  hill.  Where  were  you  going 
when  this  popinjay  stopped  you?" 

"I  was  going  to  the  clock-mender's  for  a  clock 
he  is  repairing." 

"I've  nothing  to  do.  I'll  go  with  you.  I've 
an  idea  that  I  should  like  to  talk  with  you  about 
a  very  important  matter.  Perhaps  it  would  be 
easier  to  talk  first  and  then  go  for  the  clock.  If 
you  have  it  you'll  be  watching  it.  Will  you  come 
into  the  garden  with  me  now?" 

"Yes,  Herr."  Gretchen  would  have  gone  any 
where  with  this  strange  man.  He  inspired  con 
fidence. 

The  garden  was  a  snug  little  place;  a  few 
peach-trees  and  arbor-vines  and  vegetables,  and 
tables  and  chairs  on  the  brick  walk. 


230          THE    GOOSE   GIRL 

"So  you  are  going  to  become  a  prima  donna?" 
he  began,  seating  himself  opposite  her. 

"I  am  going  to  try,"  she  smiled.  "What  is  it 
you  wish  to  say  to  me?" 

"I  am  wondering  how  to  begin,"  looking  at 
the  blue  sky. 

"Is  it  difficult?" 

"Yes,  very." 

"Then  why  bother?" 

"Some  things  are  written  before  we  are  born. 
And  I  must,  in  the  order  of  things,  read  this 
writing  to  you." 

"Begin,"  said  Gretchen. 

"Have  you  any  dreams?" 

"Yes,"  vaguely. 

"I  mean  the  kind  one  has  in  the  daytime,  the 
dreams  when  the  eyes  are  wide  open." 

"Oh,  yes !" 

"Who  has  not  dreamed  of  riding  in  carriages, 
of  dressing  in  silks,  of  wearing  rich  ornaments  ?" 

"Ah !"  Gretchen  clasped  her  hands  and  leaned 
on  her  elbows.  "And  there  are  palaces,  too." 

"To  be  sure."  There  was  a  long  pause.  "How 
would  you  like  a  dream  of  this  kind  to  come 
true?" 


A    DAY    DREAM 

"Do  they  ever  come  true  ?" 

"In  this  particular  case,  I  am  a  fairy.  I  know 
that  I  do  not  look  it ;  still,  I  am.  With  one  touch 
of  my  wand — this  oak  staff — I  can  bring  you  all 
these  things  you  have  dreamed  about." 

"But  what  would  I  do  with  carriages  and  jew 
els  ?  I  am  only  a  goose-girl,  and  I  am  to  be  mar 
ried." 

"To  that  young  rascal  of  a  vintner?" 

"He  is  not  a  rascal !"  loyally. 

"It  will  take  but  little  to  make  him  one,"  with 
an  odd  grimness. 

Gretchen  did  not  understand. 

He  resumed.  "How  would  you  like  a  little  pal 
ace,  with  servants  at  your  beck  and  call,  with 
carriages  to  ride  in,  with  silks  and  velvets  to 
wear,  and  jewels  to  adorn  your  hair?  How 
would  you  like  these  things?  Eh?  Never  again 
to  worry  about  your  hands,  never  again  to  know 
the  weariness  of  toil,  to  be  mistress  of  swans  in 
stead  of  geese?" 

A  shadow  fell  upon  Gretchen's  face;  the  ea 
gerness  died  out  of  her  eyes. 

"I  do  not  understand  you,  Herr.  By  what 
right  should  I  possess  these  things  ?" 


THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"By  the  supreme  right  of  beauty,  beauty 
alone." 

"Would  it  be— honest?" 

For  the  first  time  he  lowered  his  eyes.  The 
clear  crystal  spirit  in  hers  embarrassed  him. 

"Come,  let  us  go  for  your  clock,"  he  said, 
rising.  "I  am  an  old  fool.  I  forgot  that  one 
talks  like  this  only  to  opera-dancers." 

Then  Gretchen  understood.  "I  am  all  alone," 
she  said;  "I  have  had  to  fight  my  battles  with 
these  two  hands." 

"I  am  a  black  devil,  Kindchen.  Forget  what  I 
have  said.  You  are  worthy  the  brightest  crown 
in  Europe ;  but  you  wear  a  better  one  than  that 
— goodness.  If  any  one  should  ever  make  you 
unhappy,  come  to  me.  I  will  be  your  godfather. 
Will  you  forgive  an  old  man  who  ought  to  have 
known  better?" 

There  was  such  unmistakable  honesty  In  his 
face  and  eyes  that  she  did  not  hesitate,  but  placed 
her  hand  in  his. 

"Why  did  you  ask  all  those  questions?"  she 
inquired. 

"Perhaps  it  was  only  to  test  your  strength. 
You  are  a  brave  and  honest  girl." 


A    DAY   DREAM  233 

"And  if  trouble  came,"  now  smiling,  "where 
should  I  find  you  ?" 

"I  shall  be  near  when  it  comes.  Good  fairies 
are  always  close  at  hand."  He  swept  his  hat 
from  his  head ;  ease  and  grace  were  in  the  move 
ment;  no  irony,  nothing  but  respect.  "And  do 
you  love  this  vintner?" 

"With  all  my  heart." 

"And  he  loves  you  ?" 

"Yes.  His  lips  might  He,  but  not  his  eyes  and 
the  touch  of  his  hand." 

"So  much  the  worse !"  said  the  mountaineer  in- 
audibly. 

Gretchen  had  gone  home  with  her  clock;  but 
still  Herr  Ludwig,  as  the  mountaineer  called 
himself,  tarried  in  the  dim  and  dusty  shop. 
Clocks,  old  and  new,  broken  and  whole,  clocks 
from  the  four  ends  of  the  world;  and  watches, 
thick  and  clumsy,  thin  and  graceful,  of  gold  and 
silver  and  pewter. 

"Is  there  anything  you  want?"  asked  the 
clock-mender. 

Herr  Ludwig  turned.  How  old  this  clock- 
mender  was,  how  very  old ! 

"Yes,"  he  said.     "I've  a  watch  I  should  like 


234          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

you  to  look  over."  And  he  carelessly  laid  the 
beautiful  time-piece  on  the  worn  wooden  counter. 

The  clock-mender  literally  pounced  upon  it. 
"Where  did  you  get  a  watch  like  this?"  he  de 
manded  suspiciously. 

"It  is  mine.  You  will  find  my  name  engraved 
inside  the  back  lid." 

The  clock-mender  pried  open  the  case,  adjust 
ed  his  glass — and  dropped  it,  shaking  with  ter 
ror. 

"You?"  he  whispered. 

"Sh!"  said  Herr  Ludwig,  putting  a  finger  to 
his  lips. 


CHAPTER    XIV 

FIND    THE    WOMAN 

THE  watch,  slipping  from  the  clock-mend 
er's  hand,  spun  like  a  coin  on  the  counter, 
while  the  clock-mender  himself,  his  eyes  bulging, 
his  jaw  dangling,  it  might  be  said,  staggered 
back  upon  his  stool. 

"So  this  is  the  end?"  he  said  in  a  kind  of  mut 
ter. 

"The  end  of  what?"  demanded  the  owner  of 
the  watch. 

"Of  all  my  labors,  to  me  and  to  what  little  I 
have  left!" 

"Fiddlesticks !  I  am  here  for  no  purpose  re 
garding  you,  my  comrade.  So  far  as  I  am  con 
cerned,  your  secret  is  as  dead  as  it  ever  was.  I 
had  a  fancy  that  you  were  living  in  Paris." 

"Paris !  Gott!  For  seventeen,  eighteen  years 
I  have  traveled  hither  and  thither,  always  on 
some  false  clue.  Never  a  band  of  Gipsies  I 
235 


236          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

heard  of  that  I  did  not  seek  them  out.  Nothing, 
nothing !  You  will  never  know  what  I  have  gone 
through,  and  uselessly,  to  prove  my  innocence. 
It  always  comes  back  in  a  circle ;  what  benefit  to 
me  would  have  been  a  crime  like  that  of  which  I 
was  accused?  Was  I  not  high  in  honor?  Was  I 
not  wealthy?  Was  not  my  home  life  a  happy 
one?  What  benefit  to  me,  I  say?"  a  growing 
fierceness  in  his  voice  and  gestures.  "All  my  es 
tates  confiscated,  my  wife  dead  of  shame,  and  I 
molding  among  these  clocks !" 

"But  why  the  clocks  ?"  in  wonder. 

"It  was  a  pastime  of  mine  when  I  was  a  boy. 
I  used  to  be  tinkering  among  all  the  clocks  in  the 
house.  So  I  bought  out  this  old  shop.  From 
time  to  time  I  have  left  it  in  the  hands  of  an  as 
sistant.  The  grand  duke  has  a  wonderful  Frie- 
sian  clock.  One  day  it  fell  out  of  order,  and  the 
court  jeweler  could  do  nothing  with  it.  I  was 
summoned,  I!  No  one  recognized  me,  I  have 
changed  so.  I  mended  the  clock  and  went  away." 

"But  what  is  the  use  of  all  this,  now  that  her 
highness  is  found?" 

"My  honor ;  to  the  duke  it  is  black  as  ever." 

"Have  you  gone  forward  any  ?" 


FIND    THE    WOMAN         237 

"Like  Sisyphus!  I  had  begun  to  give  up 
hope,  when  the  Gipsy  I  was  seeking  was  seen  by 
one  of  my  agents.  He  alone  knows  the  secret. 
And  I  am  waiting,  waiting.  But  you  believe, 
Ludwig?" 

"Carl,  you  are  as  innocent  of  it  all  as  I  am 
or  as  my  brother  was.  Come  with  me  to  Jugend- 
heit." 

"No,  Ludwig,  this  is  my  country,  however  un 
justly  it  has  treated  me." 

"Yes,  yes.  And  to  think  that  you  and  I  and 
the  grand  duke  were  comrades  at  Heidelberg! 
But  if  your  Gipsy  fails  you  ?" 

"Still  I  shall  remain.  This  will  be  all  I  shall 
have,  these  clocks.  I  am  only  sixty-eight,  yet  no 
one  would  believe  me  under  eighty.  I  no  longer 
gaze  into  mirrors.  I  have  forgotten  how  I  look. 
There  were  letters  found  in  my  desk,  all  forger 
ies,  I  knew,  but  so  cleverly  done  I  could  only 
deny.  I  saw  that  my  case  was  hopeless,  so  I  fled 
to  Paris.  I  wrote  Herbeck  once  while  there.  He 
believed  that  I  was  innocent.  I  have  his  letter 
yet.  He  has  a  great  heart,  Ludwig,  and  he  has 
done  splendid  work  for  Ehrenstein." 

"He  keeps  a  steady  hand  on  the  duke." 


238          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"But  you,  what  are  you  doing  in  Dreiberg,  in 
this  guise?" 

Herr  Ludwig  sat  upon  the  counter  and 
clasped  a  knee.  "Do  you  care  for  fairy- 
stories  ?" 

"Sometimes." 

"Well,  once  upon  a  time  there  lived  a  king.  He 
was  young.  He  had  an  uncle  who  watched  over 
him  and  his  affairs.  They  call  such  uncles  prince 
regents.  This  prince  regent  had  an  idea  regard 
ing  the  future  welfare  of  this  nephew.  He 
would  bring  him  up  to  be  a  man,  well  educated, 
broad-minded,  and  clean-lived.  He  should  have 
a  pilot  to  guide  him  past  the  traps  and  vices 
which  befall  the  young.  Time  wore  on.  The 
lad  grew  up,  clean  in  mind,  strong  in  body,  lib 
eral;  a  fine  prince.  No  scandalous  entangle 
ments  ;  no  gaming ;  no  wine-bibbing  beyond  what 
any  decent  man  may  do.  In  his  palace  few  saw 
anything  of  him  after  his  fifteenth  year.  He 
went  into  the  world  under  an  assumed  name.  By 
and  by  he  came  home,  quietly.  His  uncle  was 
proud  of  him,  for  his  eye  was  clear  and  his 
tongue  was  clean.  In  one  month  he  was  to  be 
coronated.  And  now  what  do  you  think?  He 


FIND    THE    WOMAN         239 

must  have  one  more  adventure,  just  one.  Would 
his  uncle  go  with  him?  Certainly  not.  More 
over,  the  time  for  adventure  was  over.  He  must 
no  longer  wander  about ;  he  was  a  king ;  he  must 
put  his  hand  to  king-craft.  And  one  morning 
his  uncle  found  him  gone,  gone  as  completely  as 
if  he  had  never  existed.  What  to  do  ?  Ah !  The 
prince  regent  set  it  going  that  his  majesty  had 
gone  a-hunting  in  Bavaria.  Then  the  prince 
regent  put  on  some  old  clothes  and  went  a-ven- 
turing  himself." 

"And  the  end?" 

"God  knows!"  said  Ludwig,  sliding  off  the 
counter. 

Nothing  but  the  ticking  of  the  clocks  was 
heard. 

"And  fatuous  fool  that  this  uncle  was,  he  com 
mitted  an  almost  irreparable  blunder.  He  tried 
to  marry  his  nephew." 

"I  understand.  But  if  you  are  discovered 
here?" 

"That  is  not  likely." 

"Ah,  Ludwig,  it  is  not  the  expected  that  al 
ways  happens.  Be  careful;  you  know  the  full 
wording  of  Herbeck's  treaty." 


240          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"Herbeck ;  there's  a  man,"  said  Herr  Ludwig 
admiringly.  "To  have  found  her  highness  as 
he  did !" 

"He  is  lucky,"  but  without  resentment. 

The  other  picked  up  his  watch.  "Can  I  be 
of  material  assistance?" 

"I  want  nothing,"  haughtily. 

"Proud  old  imbecile !"  replied  the  mountaineer 
kindly.  "You  have  been  deeply  wronged,  but 
some  day  you  will  pick  up  the  thread  in  the 
labyrinth,  and  there  will  be  light  forward.  I 
myself  shall  see  what  can  be  done  with  the  duke." 

"He  will  never  be  brought  to  reason  unless 
indubitable  evidence  of  my  innocence  confronts 
him.  With  the  restoration  of  the  princess  fifty 
political  prisoners  were  given  their  liberty  and 
restored  to  citizenship.  The  place  once  occupied 
by  my  name  is  still  blank,  obliterated.  It  is 
hard.  I  have  given  the  best  of  my  heart  and 
of  my  brain  to  Ehrenstein — for  this !  I  am  in 
nocent." 

"I  believe  you,  Carl.  Remember,  Jugendheit 
will  always  welcome  you.  I  must  be  going.  I 
have  much  to  do  between  now  and  midnight. 
The  good  God  will  unravel  the  snarl." 


FIND    THE    WOMAN         241 

"Or  forget  it,"  cynically.  "Good-by,  Lud- 
wig" 

There  was  a  hand-clasp,  and  the  mountaineer 
took  himself  off.  The  clock-mender  philosoph 
ically  reached  for  his  tools.  He  had  wasted  time 
enough  over  retrospection ;  he  determined  to  oc 
cupy  himself  with  the  present  only.  Tick-tock ! 
tick-tock!  sang  the  clocks  about  him.  All  at 
once  a  volume  of  musical  sounds  broke  forth; 
cuckoo-calls,  chimes,  tinkles  light  and  thin, 
booms  deep  and  vibrant.  But  the  clock-mender 
bent  over  his  work ;  all  he  was  conscious  of  was 
the  eternal  tick-tock !  tick-tock !  on  and  on,  with 
out  cessation. 

Carmichael  walked  his  horse.  This  morning 
he  had  ridden  out  almost  to  the  frontier  and  was 
now  on  his  return.  As  he  passed  through  the 
last  grove  of  pines  and  came  into  the  clearing 
the  picture  was  exquisite;  the  three  majestic 
bergs  of  ice  and  snow  above  Dreiberg,  the  city 
shining  white  and  fairylike  in  the  mid-morning's 
sun,  and  the  long,  half-circling  ribbon  of  a  road. 
He  sighed,  and  the  horse  cocked  his  ears  at  the 
sound. 


THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

No  longer  did  Carmiehael  take  the  south  pass 
for  his  morning1  rides.  That  was  the  favored 
going  of  her  highness,  and  he  avoided  her  now. 
In  truth,  he  dared  not  meet  her  now;  it  would 
have  been  out  of  wisdom.  So  long  as  she  had 
been  free  his  presence  had  caused  no  comment, 
only  tolerant  amusement  among  the  nobles  at 
court.  It  chafed  him  to  be  regarded  as  a  harm 
less  individual,  for  he  knew  that  he  was  far  from 
being  in  that  class.  There  was  a  wild  strain  in 
him.  Dreiberg  might  have  waked  up  some  fine 
morning  to  learn  that  for  a  second  time  her 
princess  had  been  stolen,  and  that  there  was  a 
vacancy  in  the  American  consulate.  How  many 
times  had  he  been  seized  with  the  mad  desire  to 
snatch  the  bridle  of  her  horse  and  ride  away 
with  her  into  a  far  country!  How  often  had 
his  arms  started  out  toward  her,  only  to  drop 
stiffly  to  his  sides ! 

March  hares  !  They  were  Solons  as  compared 
with  his  own  futile  madness.  But  it  was  differ 
ent  now.  She  was  to  marry  the  king  of  Jugend- 
heit;  it  was  in  the  order  of  things  that  he  ride 
alone.  He  knew  that  court  etiquette  demanded 
the  isolation  of  the  Princess  Hildegarde  from 


FIND    THE    WOMAN         243 

male  escort  other  than  that  formally  provided. 
The  two  soldiers  detailed  to  act  as  her  grooms 
or  bodyguards  were  not,  of  course,  to  be  con 
sidered.  So,  of  the  morning,  he  went  down  to 
the  military  field  to  watch  the  maneuvers,  which 
were  drawing  to  a  close ;  or  rode  out  to  the  fron 
tier,  or  took  the  side  road  to  Eissen,  where  the 
summer  palaces  were.  But  it  was  all  dreary; 
the  zest  of  living  had  somehow  dropped  out  of 
things. 

The  road  to  Eissen  began  about  six  miles 
north  of  the  base  of  the  Dreiberg  mountain.  It 
swerved  to  the  east.  As  Carmichael  reached  the 
fork  his  horse  began  to  limp.  He  jumped  down 
and  removed  the  stone.  It  was  then  that  he 
heard  the  far-off  mutter  of  hoofs.  Coming  along 
the  road  from  Eissen  were  a  trio  of  riders.  Car 
michael  laughed  weakly. 

"I  swear  to  Heaven  that  this  is  no  fault  of 
mine !" 

Should  he  mount  and  be  off  before  she  made 
the  turn?  Bah!  It  was  an  accident;  he  would 
make  the  most  of  it.  The  bodyguard  could  easily 
vindicate  him,  in  any  event.  He  remounted  and 
waited. 


THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

She  came  in  full  flight,  rosy,  radiant,  as  lovely 
as  Diana.  Carmichael  swung  his  cap  boyishly ; 
and  there  was  a  swirl  of  dust  as  she  drew  up. 

"Good  morning,  Herr  Carmichael !" 

"Good  morning,  your  Highness !" 

"Which  way  have  you  been  riding?" 

"Toward  Jugendheit." 

"And  you  are  returning?"  With  a  short  nod 
of  her  head  she  signaled  for  the  two  soldiers  to 
fall  back. 

The  two  looked  at  each  other  embarrassedly. 

"Pardon,  Highness,"  said  one  of  them,  "but 
the  orders  of  the  duke  will  not  permit  us  to  leave 
you.  There  have  been  thieves  along  the  road  of 
late." 

Thieves?  This  was  the  first  time  Carmichael 
had  heard  of  it.  The  real  significance  of  the 
maneuver  escaped  him;  but  her  highness  was 
not  fooled. 

"Very  well,"  she  replied.  "One  of  you  ride 
forward  and  one  of  you  take  the  rear."  Then 
she  spoke  to  Carmichael  in  English. 

The  soldiers  shrugged.  To  them  it  did  not 
matter  what  language  her  highness  adopted  so 
long  as  they  obeyed  the  letter  of  the  duke's  in- 


FIND    THE    WOMAN        245 

structions.  The  little  cavalcade  directed  its 
course  toward  the  city. 

"You  have  not  been  riding  of  late,"  she  said. 

Then  she  had  missed  him.  Carmichael's  heart 
expanded.  To  be  missed  is  to  be  regretted,  and 
one  regrets  only  those  in  whom  one  is  interested. 

"I  have  ridden  the  same  as  usual,  your  High 
ness  ;  only  I  have  taken  this  road  for  a  change." 

"Ah !"  She  patted  the  glistening  neck  of  her 
mare.  So  he  had  purposely  tried  to  avoid  her? 
Why?  She  stole  a  sly  glance  at  him.  Why 
were  not  king's  molded  in  this  form?  All  the 
kings  she  had  met  had  something  the  matter  with 
them,  crooked  legs,  weak  eyes,  bald,  young,  or 
old,  and  daft  over  gaming-tables  and  opera- 
dancers.  And  the  one  man  among  them  all — at 
least  she  had  been  informed  that  the  king  of 
Jugendheit  was  all  of  a  man — had  politely  de 
clined.  There  was  some  chagrin  in  this  for  her, 
but  no  bitterness  or  rancor.  In  truth,  she  was 
more  chagrined  on  her  father's  account  than  on 
her  own. 

"You  should  have  taken  the  south  pass.  It 
was  lovely  yesterday." 

"Perhaps  this  way  has  been  wisest." 


246          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"Are  you  become  afraid  of  me?"  archly. 

"Yes,  your  Highness."  If  he  had  looked  at 
her  instead  of  his  horse's  ears,  and  smiled,  all 
would  have  been  well. 

She  instantly  regretted  the  question.  "I  am 
sorry  that  I  have  become  an  ogress." 

"To  me  your  highness  is  the  most  perfect  of 
women.  I  am  guilty  of  lese-majesty." 

"I  shall  not  lock  you  up,"  she  said,  and  added 
under  her  breath,  "as  my  good  father  would 
like  to !  Besides,"  she  continued  aloud,  "I  rather 
like  to  set  the  court  by  the  ears.  Whoever  heard 
of  a  serene  highness  doing  the  things  I  do?  I 
suppose  it  is  because  I  have  known  years  of  free 
dom,  freedom  of  action,  of  thought,  of  speech. 
These  habits  can  not  change  at  once.  In  fact, 
I  do  not  believe  they  ever  will.  But  the  duke, 
my  father,  is  good;  he  understands  and  trusts 
me.  Ah,  but  I  shall  lead  some  king  a  merry 
life !"  with  a  wicked  gleam  in  her  eyes. 

"Frederick  of  Jugendheit?" 

"Is  it  true  that  you  have  not  heard  yet?  I 
have  declined  the  honor." 

"Your  highness?" 

"My  serene  highness,"  with  a  smile.     "This, 


of  course,  is  as  jet  a  state  secret ;  and  my  reason 
for  telling1  you  is  not  a  princess5,  but  a  woman's. 
Solve  it  if  you  can." 

Carmichael  fumbled  the  reins  blindly.  "They 
say  that  he  is  a  handsome  young  man." 

"What  has  that  to  do  with  it?  The  interest 
he  takes  in  his  kingdom  is  positively  negative. 
I  have  learned  that  he  has  been  to  his  capital  but 
twice  since  he  was  fifteen.  He  is  even  now  ab 
sent  on  a  hunting  trip  in  Bavaria,  and  his  coro 
nation  but  a  few  days  off.  There  will  be  only 
one  king  in  Jugendheit,  and  that  will  be  the 
prince  regent." 

"He  has  done  tolerably  well  up  to  the  pres 
ent,"  observed  Carmichael,  welcoming  this 
change.  "Jugendheit  is  prosperous;  it  has  a 
splendid  army.  The  prince  regent  is  a  fine  type 
of  man,  they  say,  rugged,  patient,  frugal  and 
sensible." 

"There  is  an  instance  where  he  made  a  cruel 
blunder." 

"No  man  is  infallible,"  said  he,  wondering 
what  this  blunder  was. 

"I  suppose  not.  Look!  The  artillery  is  fir- 
ing." 


248          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

Boom-boom !  They  saw  the  smoke  leap  from 
the  muzzles  of  the  cannon,  and  it  seemed  minutes 
before  the  sound  reached  them. 

"I  have  a  fine  country,  too,"  she  said,  with 
pride;  "prosperous,  and  an  army  not  inferior 
to  that  of  Jugendheit." 

"I  was  not  making  comparisons,  your  High 
ness." 

"I  know  that,  my  friend.  I  was  simply  speak 
ing  from  the  heart.  But  I  doubt  if  the  prince 
regent  is  a  better  man  than  our  Herbeck." 

"I  prefer  Herbeck,  never  having  met  the 
prince  regent.  But  I  have  some  news  for  your 
highness." 

"News  for  me?" 

"Yes.  I  am  about  to  ask  for  my  recall,"  he 
said,  the  idea  having  come  into  his  mind  at  that 
precise  moment. 

"Your  recall?" 

Had  he  been  looking  at  her  he  would  have  no 
ticed  that  the  color  on  her  fair  cheeks  had  gone 
a  shade  lighter. 

"Yes." 

"Is  not  this  sudden?  It  is  not  very  compli 
mentary  to  Ehrenstein." 


FIND    THE    WOMAN         249 

"The  happiest  days  in  my  life  have  been  spent 
here." 

"Then  why  seek  to  be  recalled?" 

"I  am  essentially  a  man  of  action,  your  High 
ness.  I  am  growing  dull  and  stupid  amid  these 
charming  pleasures.  Action ;  I  have  always  been 
mixed  up  in  some  trouble  or  other.  Here  it  is 
a  round  of  pleasure  from  day  to  day.  I  long 
for  buffets.  I  am  wicked  enough  to  wish  for 
war." 

"Cherchez  la  femme!"  she  cried.  "There  is  a 
woman  ?" 

"Oh,  yes !"  recklessly. 

"Then  go  to  her,  my  friend,  go  to  her."  And 
she  waved  her  crop  over  his  head  as  in  benedic 
tion.  "Some  day,  before  you  go,  I  shall  ask 
you  all  about  her."  Ah,  as  if  she  did  not  know ! 
But  half  the  charm  in  life  is  playing  with  hid 
den  dangers. 

He  did  not  speak,  but  caught  up  the  reins 
firmly.  She  touched  her  mare  on  the  flank,  and 
the  four  began  trotting,  a  pace  which  they  main 
tained  as  far  as  the  military  field.  Here  they 
paused,  for  the  scene  was  animated  and  full  of 
color.  Squadrons  of  cavalry  raced  across  the 


250          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

field;  infantry  closed  in  or  deployed;  artillery 
rumbled,  wheeled,  stopped,  unlimbered.  Bang- 
bang  !  The  earth  shivered  and  rocked.  Guerdons 
were  flying,  bugles  were  blowing,  and  sabers  were 
flashing. 

"It  is  beautiful,"  she  cried,  "this  mimic  war." 

"May  your  highness  never  see  aught  else !"  he 
replied  fervently. 

"Yes,  yes ;  you  have  seen  it  divested  of  all  its 
pomp.  You  have  seen  it  in  all  its  cruelty  and 
horror." 

"I  have  known  even  the  terror  of  it." 

"You  were  afraid?" 

"Many  times." 

She  laughed.  It  is  only  the  coward  who  de 
nies  fear. 

He  would  certainly  ask  for  his  recall  or  trans 
fer.  He  was  eating  his  heart  out  here  in  Drei- 
berg. 

They  began  the  incline.  She  did  most  of  the 
talking,  brightly  and  gaily;  but  his  ears  were 
dull,  for  the  undercurrent  passed  by  him.  He 
was,  for  the  first  time,  impressed  with  the  fact 
that  the  young  ladies  of  the  court  never  accom 
panied  her  os.  her  morning  rides.  There  were 


FIND    THE    WOMAN         251 

frequent  afternoon  excursions,  when  several 
ladies  and  gentlemen  rode  with  her  highness, 
but  in  the  mornings,  never. 

"Will  you  return  to  America  ?"  she  queried. 

"I  shall  idle  in  Paris  for  a  while.  I  have  an 
idea  that  there  will  be  war  one  of  these  days." 

"And  which  side  will  you  take?" 

"I  should  be  a  traitor  if  I  fought  for  France ; 
I  should  be  an  ingrate  if  I  fought  against  her. 
I  should  be  a  spectator,  a  neutral." 

"That  would  expose  you  to  danger  without 
the  right  to  strike  a  blow  in  defense." 

"If  I  were  hurt  it  would  be  but  an  accident. 
War  correspondents  would  run  a  hundred  more 
risks  than  I.  Oh,  I  should  be  careful;  I  know 
war  too  well  not  to  be." 

"All  this  is  strange  talk  for  a  man  who  is  a 
confessed  lover." 

"Pardon  me !"  his  eyes  rather  empty. 

"Why,  you  tell  me  there  is  a  woman ;  and  all 
your  talk  is  about  war  and  danger.  These  are 
opposites ;  please  explain." 

"There  is  a  woman,  but  she  will  not  hinder  me 
in  any  way.  She  will,  in  fact,  know  nothing 
about  it." 


252          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"You  are  a  strange  lover.  I  never  read  any 
thing  like  you  in  story-books.  Forgive  me!  I 
am  thoughtless.  The  subject  may  be  painful  to 
you." 

The  horses  began  to  pull.  Under  normal  cir 
cumstances  Carmichael  would  not  have  dismount 
ed,  but  his  horse  had  carried  him  many  miles 
that  morning,  and  he  was  a  merciful  rider.  In 
the  war  days  often  had  his  life  depended  upon 
the  care  of  his  horse. 

"You  have  been  riding  hard?" 

"No,  only  far." 

"I  do  not  believe  that  there  is  a  finer  horseman 
in  all  Ehrenstein  than  yourself." 

"Your  highness  is  very  good  to  say  that." 
Why  had  he  not  gone  on  instead  of  waiting  at 
the  fork? 

Within  a  few  hundred  yards  of  the  gates  he 
mounted  again.  And  then  he  saw  a  lonely 
figure  sitting  on  the  parapet.  He  would  have 
recognized  that  square  form  anywhere.  And  he 
welcomed  the  sight  of  it. 

"Your  Highness,  do  you  see  that  man  yonder, 
on  the  parapet?  We  fought  in  the  same  cav 
alry.  He  is  covered  with  scars.  Not  one  man 


253 

in  a  thousand  would  have  gone  through  what  he 
did  and  lived." 

"Is  he  an  American  ?" 

"By  adoption.  And  may  I  ask  a  favor  of  your 
highness  ?" 

"Two !"  merrily. 

"May  I  present  him?  It  will  be  the  joy  of 
his  life." 

"Certainly.    All  brave  men  interest  me." 

Grumbach  rose  up,  uncovered,  thinking  that 
the  riders  were  going  to  pass  him.  But  to  his 
surprise  his  friend  Carmichael  stopped  his  horse 
and  beckoned  to  him. 

"Herr  Grumbach,"  said  Carmichael,  "her  se 
rene  highness  desires  me  to  present  you." 

Hans  was  stricken  dumb.  He  knew  of  no 
greater  honor. 

"Mr.  Carmichael,"  she  said  in  English,  "tells 
me  that  you  fought  with  him  in  the  American 
war  ?" 

"Yes,  Highness." 

She  plied  him  with  a  number  of  questions ; 
how  many  battles  they  had  fought  in,  how  many 
times  they  had  been  wounded,  how  they  lived  in 
camp,  and  so  forth;  and  which  was  the  more 


254.          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

powerful  engine  of  war,  the  infantry  or  the 
cavalry. 

"The  cavalry,  Highness,"  said  Hans,  without 
hesitation. 

She  laughed.  "If  you  had  been  a  foot-soldier, 
you  would  have  said  the  infantry ;  of  the  artil 
lery,  you  would  have  sworn  by  the  cannon." 

"That  is  true,  Highness.  The  three  arms  are 
necessary,  but  there  is  ever  the  individual  pride 
in  the  arm  one  serves  in." 

"And  that  is  right.  You  speak  good  Eng 
lish,"  she  remarked. 

"I  have  lived  more  than  sixteen  years  in 
America,  Highness." 

"Do  you  like  it  there?" 

"It  is  a  great  country,  full  of  great  ideas  and 
great  men,  Highness." 

"And  you  will  go  back?" 

"Soon,  Highness." 

The  mare,  knowing  that  this  was  the  way 
home,  grew  restive  and  began  prancing  and 
pawing  the  road.  She  reined  in  quickly.  As  she 
did  so,  something  yellow  flashed  downward  and 
tinkled  as  it  struck  the  ground.  Grumbach 
hastened  forward. 


FIND    THE    WOMAN         255 

"My  locket,"  said  her  highness  anxiously. 

"It  is  not  broken,  Highness,"  said  Grumbach ; 
"only  the  chain  has  come  apart."  Then  he 
handed  it  to  her  gravely. 

"Thank  you !"  Her  highness  put  both  chain 
and  locket  into  a  small  purse  which  she  carried 
in  her  belt,  touched  the  mare,  and  sped  up  the 
road,  Carmichael  following. 

Grumbach  returned  to  the  parapet.  He  fol 
lowed  them  till  they  passed  out  of  sight  beyond 
the  gates. 

"Gott!"  he  murmured. 

His  face  was  as  livid  as  the  scar  on  his  head. 


CHAPTER  XV 

THE    WRONG    MAN 

HERBECK  dropped  his  quill,  and  there 
was  a  dream  in  his  eyes.  His  desk  was 
littered  with  papers,  well  covered  with  ink ;  flow 
ing  sentences,  and  innumerable  figures.  He  was 
the  watch-dog  of  the  duchy.  Never  a  bill  from 
the  Reichstag  that  did  not  pass  under  his  cold 
eye  before  it  went  to  the  duke  for  his  signature, 
his  approval,  or  veto.  Not  a  copper  was  need 
lessly  wasted,  and  never  was  one  held  back  un 
necessarily.  Herbeck  was  just  both  in  great 
and  little  things.  The  commoners  could  neither 
fool  nor  browbeat  him. 

The  dream  in  his  eyes  grew ;  it  was  tender  and 
kindly.  The  bar  of  sunlight  lengthened  across 
his  desk,  and  finally  passed  on.  Still  he  sat 
there,  motionless,  rapt.  And  thus  the  duke 
found  him.  But  there  was  no  dream  in  his  eyes ; 
they  were  cold  with  implacable  anger.  He  held 
a  letter  in  his  hand  «,nd  tossed  it  to  Herbeck. 
256 


THE    WRONG   MAN          257 

"I  shall  throw  ten  thousand  men  across  the 
frontier  to-night,  let  the  consequences  be  what 
they  may." 

"Ten  thousand  men?"  The  dream  was  shat 
tered.  War  again? 

"Read  that.  It  is  the  second  anonymous  com 
munication  I  have  received  within  a  week.  As 
the  first  was  truthful,  there  is  no  reason  to  be 
lieve  this  one  to  be  false." 

Herbeck  read,  and  he  was  genuinely  startled. 

"What  do  you  say  to  that?"  triumphantly. 

"This,"  with  that  rapid  decision  which  made 
him  the  really  great  tactician  he  was.  "Let  them 
go  quietly  back  to  Jugendheit." 

"No!"  blazed  the  duke. 

"Are  we  rich  enough  for  war?" 

"Always  questions,  questions  !  What  the  devil 
is  my  army  for  if  not  to  uphold  my  dignity? 
Herbeck,  you  shall  not  argue  me  out  of  this." 

"Rather  let  me  reason.  This  is  some  prank, 
which  I  am  sure  does  not  concern  Ehrenstein  in 
the  least.  They  would  never  dare  enter  Drei- 
berg  for  aught  else.  There  must  be  a  flaw  in 
our  secret  service." 

"Doubtless." 


258          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"I  have  seen  this  writing  before,"  said  Her- 
beck.  "I  shall  make  it  my  business  to  inquire 
who  it  is  that  takes  this  kindly  interest  in  the 
affairs  of  state." 

The  duke  struck  the  bell  violently. 

"Summon  the  chief  of  the  police,"  he  said  to 
the  secretary. 

"Yes,  yes,  your  Highness,  let  it  be  a  police 
affair.  This  letter  does  not  state  the  why  and 
wherefore  of  their  presence  here." 

"It  holds  enough  for  me." 

"Will  your  highness  leave  the  matter  in  my 
hands?" 

"Herbeck,  in  some  things  you  are  weak." 

"And  in  others  I  am  strong,"  smiled  the  chan 
cellor.  "I  am  weak  when  there  is  talk  of  war; 
I  am  strong  when  peace  is  in  the  balance." 

"Is  it  possible,  Herbeck,  that  you  do  not  ap 
preciate  the  magnitude  of  the  situation  ?" 

"It  is  precisely  because  I  do  that  I  wish  to 
move  slowly.  Wait.  Let  the  police  find  out 
why  they  are  here.  There  will  be  time  enough 
then  to  declare  war.  They  have  never  seen  her 
highness.  Who  knows  ?" 

"Ah !    But  they  have  violated  the  treaty." 


259 

"That  depends  upon  whether  their  presence 
here  is  or  is  not  a  menace  to  the  state.  If  they 
are  here  on  private  concerns  which  in  no  wise 
touch  Ehrenstein,  it  would  be  foolhardy  to  de 
clare  war.  Your  highness  is  always  letting  your 
personal  wounds  blur  your  eyesight.  Some  day 
you  will  find  that  Jugendheit  is  innocent." 

"God  hasten  the  day  and  hour !" 

"Yes,  let  us  hope  that  the  mystery  of  it  all 
will  be  cleared  up.  You  are  just  and  patient  in 
everything  but  this."  Herbeck  idled  with  his 
quill.  The  little  finger  of  his  right  hand  was 
badly  scarred,  the  mutilation  of  a  fencing-bout 
in  his  student  days. 

"What  do  you  advise?"  wearily.  It  seemed 
to  the  duke  that  Herbeck  of  late  never  agreed 
with  him. 

"My  advice  is  to  wait.  In  a  day  or  so  arrest 
them  under  the  pretext  that  you  believe  them  to 
be  spies.  If  they  remain  mute,  then  the  case  is 
serious,  and  you  will  have  them  on  the  hip.  If, 
on  the  other  hand,  this  invasion  is  harmless  and 
they  declare  themselves,  the  matter  can  be  ad 
justed  in  this  wise:  ignore  their  declaration  and 
confine  them  a  day  or  two  in  the  city  prison, 


260          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

then  publish  the  news  broadcast.  Having  them 
selves  broken  the  letter  if  not  the  spirit  of  the 
treaty,  they  will  not  dare  declare  war.  Every 
court  in  Europe  will  laugh." 

The  duke  struck  his  hands  together.  "You 
are  always  right,  Herbeck.  This  plan  could  not 
have  been  devised  better  or  more  to  my  satisfac 
tion."  The  duke  laughed.  "You  are  right. 
Ah,  here  is  the  chief." 

Herbeck  read  the  letter  in  part  to  the  chief, 
who  jotted  down  the  words,  repeating  aloud  in 
a  kind  of  mutter:  "A  mountaineer,  a  vintner, 
a  carter,  a  butcher,  and  a  baker.  You  will  give 
me  their  descriptions,  your  Excellency?" 

Herbeck  read  the  postscript. 

"But  you  don't  tell  him  who — " 

"Why  should  he  know?"  said  Herbeck,  glanc 
ing  shrewdly  at  the  duke.  "His  ignorance  will 
be  all  the  better  for  the  plot." 

"Then  this  is  big  game,  your  Highness?" 
asked  the  chief. 

"Big  game." 

"One  is  as  big  and  powerful  as  a  Carpathian 
bear.  Look  out,"  warned  Herbeck. 

"And  he  is?" 


THE    WRONG   MAN          261 

"The  mountaineer." 

"And  the  vintner?" 

"Oh,  he  is  a  little  fellow,  and  hasn't  grown  his 
bite  yet,"  said  Herbeck  dryly. 

The  duke  laughed  again.  It  would  be  as  good 
as  a  play. 

"I  thank  you,  Herbeck.  You  have  neatly  ar 
ranged  a  fine  comedy.  I  do  not  think  so  clearly 
as  I  used  to.  When  the  arrest  is  made,  give  it 
as  much  publicity  as  possible.  Take  a  squad 
of  soldiers ;  it  will  give  it  a  military  look.  Will 
you  be  on  the  field  this  afternoon  ?" 

"No,  your  Highness,"  touching  the  papers 
which  strewed  his  desk ;  "this  will  keep  me  busy 
well  into  evening." 

The  duke  waved  his  hand  cheerfully  and  left 
the  cabinet. 

"Your  excellency,  then,  really  leaves  me  to 
work  in  the  dark  ?"  asked  the  chief  uneasily. 

"Yes,"  tearing  up  the  note.  "But  you  will 
not  be  in  the  dark  long  after  you  have  arrested 
these  persons.  Begin  with  the  mountaineer  and 
the  vintner;  the  others  do  not  matter  so  much." 
Then  Herbeck  laughed.  The  chief  raised  his 
head.  He  had  not  heard  his  excellency  laugh 


262          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

like  that  in  many  moons.  "Report  to  me  your 
progress.  Unfortunately  my  informant  does 
not  state  just  where  these  fellows  are  to  be 
found." 

"That  is  my  business,  your  Excellency." 

"Good  luck  to  you !"  responded  Herbeck,  with 
a  gesture  of  dismissal. 

When  her  highness  came  in  from  her  morn 
ing's  ride  she  found  the  duke  waiting  in  her 
apartments. 

"Why,  father,"  kissing  him,  "what  brings  you 
here?" 

"A  little  idea  I  have  in  mind."  He  drew  her 
(down  to  the  arm  of  the  chair.  "We  all  have  our 
little  day-dreams." 

"Who  does  not,  father?"  She  slid  her  arm 
round  his  neck.  She  was  full  of  affection  for 
this  kindly  parent. 

"But  there  are  those  of  us  who  must  not  ac 
cept  day-dreams  as  realities ;  for  then  there  will 
be  heartaches  and  futile  longings." 

"You  are  warning  me.  About  what,  father?" 
There  was  a  little  stab  in  her  heart. 

"Herr  Carmichael  is  a  fine  fellow,  brave, 
witty,  shrewd.  If  all  Americans  are  like  him, 


THE    WRONG   MAN          263 

America  will  soon  become  a  force  in  the  world. 
I  have  taken  a  fancy  to  him ;  and  you  know  what 
they  say  of  your  father — no  formality  with 
those  whom  he  likes.  Humanly,  I  am  right ;  but 
in  the  virtue  of  everyday  events  in  court  life, 
I  am  wrong." 

She  moved  uneasily. 

He  went  on:  "Herbeck  has  spoken  of  it,  the 
older  women  speak  of  it ;  and  they  all  say — " 

"Say!"  she  cried  hotly,  leaping  to  her  feet, 
"What  do  I  care  what  they  say?  Are  you  not 
the  grand  duke,  and  am  I  not  your  daughter?" 

In  his  turn  the  duke  felt  the  stab. 

"You  must  ride  no  more  with  Herr  Carmi- 
chael.  It  is  neither  wise  nor  safe." 

"Father!" 

He  was  up,  with  his  arms  folding  round  her. 
"Child,  it  is  only  for  your  sake.  Listen  to  me. 
I  married  your  mother  because  I  loved  her  and 
she  loved  me.  The  case  is  isolated,  rare,  out  of 
the  beaten  path  in  the  affairs  of  rulers.  But 
you,  you  must  be  a  princess.  You  must  steel 
your  heart  against  the  invasion  of  love,  unless  it 
comes  from  a  state  equal  or  superior  to  your 
own.  It  is  harsh  and  cruel,  but  it  is  a  law  that 


THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

will  neither  bend  nor  break.  Do  you  under 
stand  me?" 

The  girl  stared  blindly  at  the  wall.  "Yes, 
father." 

"It  is  all  my  fault,"  said  the  duke,  deeply 
agitated,  for  the  girl  trembled  under  his  touch. 

"I  shall  not  ride  with  him  any  more." 

"There's  a  good  girl,"  patting  her  shoulder. 

"I  have  been  a  princess  such  a  little  while." 

He  kissed  the  wheaten-colored  hair.  "Be  a 
brave  heart,  and  I  shall  engage  to  find  a  king  for 
you." 

"I  don't  want  any  playthings,  father,"  with 
the  old  light  touch ;  and  then  she  looked  him  full 
in  the  eyes.  "I  promise  to  do  nothing  more  to 
create  comment  if,  on  the  other  hand,  you  will 
promise  to  give  me  two  years  more  of  freedom." 

The  duke  readily  assented,  and  shortly  re 
turned  to  his  own  suite,  rather  pleased  that  there 
had  been  no  scene ;  not  that  he  had  expected  any. 

Now  that  she  was  alone,  she  slipped  into  the 
chair,  beat  a  light  tattoo  with  her  riding-whip 
against  her  teeth,  and  looked  fixedly  at  the  wall 
again,  as  if  to  gaze  beyond  it,  into  the  dim  fu 
ture.  But  she  saw  nothing  save  that  she  was 


THE    WRONG   MAN          265 

young  and  that  the  days  in  Dresden,  for  all  their 
penury,  were  far  pleasanter  than  these. 

Meantime  the  chief  of  police  called  his  sub 
altern  and  placed  in  his  hands  the  peculiar  de 
scriptions.  The  word  vintner  caused  him  to  give 
vent  to  an  ejaculation  of  surprise. 

"He  was  in  here  last  night.  I  have  had  him 
followed  all  day.  He  lives  over  the  American 
consulate.  Among  his  things  was  found  the 
uniform  of  a  colonel  in  the  Prussian  Uhlans." 

"Ha !  Arrest  him  to-morrow,  or  the  day  after 
at  the  latest.  But  the  mountaineer  is  the  big 
game.  Do  not  arrest  the  vintner  till  you  have 
him.  Where  one  is  the  other  is  likely  to  be. 
But  on  the  moment  of  arrest  you  must  have  a 
squad  of  soldiers  at  your  back." 

"Soldiers?"  doubtfully. 

"Express  orders  of  his  highness." 

"It  shall  be  done." 

Considerable  activity  was  manifest  in  the  po 
lice  bureau  the  rest  of  that  day. 

To  return  to  Carmichael.  He  had  never  be 
fore  concerned  himself  with  resignations.  Up 
to  this  hour  he  had  never  resigned  anything  he 
had  set  his  heart  upon.  So  it  was  not  an  easy; 


266          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

matter  for  him  to  compose  a  letter  to  the  secre 
tary  of  state,  resigning  the  post  at  Dreiberg. 
True,  he  added  that  he  desired  to  be  transferred 
to  a  seaport  town,  France  or  Italy  preferred. 
The  high  altitude  in  Dreiberg  had  affected  his 
heart.  However,  in  case  there  was  no  other 
available  post,  they  would  kindly  appoint  his 
successor  at  once.  Carmichael  never  faltered 
where  his  courage  was  concerned,  and  it  needed 
a  fine  quality  of  moral  courage  to  write  this  let 
ter  and  enclose  it  in  the  diplomatic  pouch  which 
went  into  the  mails  that  night.  It  took  courage 
indeed  to  face  the  matter  squarely  and  resolutely, 
when  there  was  the  urging  desire  to  linger  on 
and  on,  indefinitely.  That  she  was  not  going 
to  marry  the  king  of  Jugendheit  did  not  alter 
his  affairs  in  the  least.  It  was  all  hopeless,  ab 
surd,  and  impossible.  He  must  go. 

Some  one  was  knocking  on  the  door. 

"Come  in." 

"A  letter  for  your  excellency,"  said  the  con 
cierge. 

"Wait  till  I  read  it.  There  may  be  an  an 
swer." 


THE    WRONG   MAN          267 

"If  Herr  Carmichael  would  learn  the  secret 
of  number  forty  Krumerweg,  let  him  attire 
himself  as  a  vintner  and  be  in  the  Krumerweg 
at  eight  o'clock  to-night." 

This  note  was  as  welcome  to  the  recipient  as 
the  flowers  in  the  spring.  An  adventure?  He 
was  ready,  now  and  always.  Anything  to  take 
his  mind  off  his  own  dismal  affairs.  Then  he 
recalled  the  woman  in  black ;  the  letter  could  ap 
ply  to  none  but  her.  More  than  this,  he  might 
light  upon  the  puzzle  regarding  the  vintner. 
He  had  met  the  fellow  before.  But  where? 

"What  sort  of  clothes  does  a  vintner  wear?" 
he  asked. 

"A  vintner,  your  Excellency?" 

"Yes.  I  shall  need  the  costume  of  a  vintner 
this  evening." 

"Oh,  that  will  be  easy,"  affirmed  the  concierge, 
"if  your  excellency  does  not  mind  wearing 
clothes  that  have  already  been  worn." 

"My  excellency  will  not  care  a  hang.  Pro 
cure  them  as  soon  as  you  can." 

So  it  came  about  that  Carmichael,  dressed  as 
a  vintner,  his  hat  over  his  eyes,  stole  into  the 
misty  night  and  took  the  way  to  the  Krumerweg. 


268          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

He  knew  exactly  where  he  wished  to  go :  number 
forty.  It  was  gray-black  in  the  small  streets ; 
and  but  for  the  occasional  light  in  a  window  the 
dark  would  have  had  no  modification.  Some 
times  he  would  lose  the  point  of  the  compass  and 
blunder  against  a  wall  or  find  himself  feeling 
for  the  curb,  hesitant  of  foot.  The  wayside 
shrine  was  a  rift  in  the  gloom,  and  he  knew  that 
he  had  only  a  few  more  steps  to  take.  After  all, 
who  was  the  lady  in  black  and  why  should  he 
bother  himself  about  her?  She  probably  came 
from  the  back  stairs  of  the  palace.  And  yet, 
the  chancellor  himself  had  been  in  this  place. 
What  should  he  do?  Should  he  wait  across  the 
street?  Should  he  knock  at  the  door  and  ask 
to  be  admitted?  No;  he  must  skulk  in  the  dark, 
on  the  opposite  side.  He  picked  his  way  over 
the  street  and  stood  for  a  moment  in  the  denser 
black. 

A  step?  He  trained  his  ear.  But  even  as  he 
did  so  his  arms  were  grasped  firmly  and  twisted 
behind  his  back,  and  at  the  same  time  a  cloth 
was  wrapped  round  the  lower  part  of  his  face, 
leaving  only  his  eyes  and  nose  visible.  It  was 
all  so  sudden  and  unexpected  that  he  was  passive 


THE    WRONG   MAN          269 

the  first  few  seconds;  after  that  there  was  some 
scuffling,  strenuous,  too.  He  was  fighting 
against  three.  Desperately  he  surged  this  way 
and  that.  Even  in  the  heat  of  battle  he  won 
dered  a  little  why  no  one  struck  him ;  they  simply 
clung  to  him,  and  at  length  he  could  not  move. 
His  hands  were  tied,  not  roughly,  but  surely. 
In  all  this  commotion,  not  a  whisper,  not  a  voice ; 
only  heavy  breathing. 

Then  one  of  the  three  whistled.  A  minute  or 
two  after  a  closed  carriage  came  into  the  Krum- 
erweg,  and  Carmichael  was  literally  bundled  in 
side.  His  feet  were  now  bound.  Two  of  his 
captors  sat  on  the  forward  seat,  while  the  third 
joined  the  driver.  Carmichael  could  distinguish 
nothing  but  outlines  and  shadows.  He  choked, 
for  he  was  furious.  To  be  trussed  like  this, 
without  any  explanation  whatever!  What  the 
devil  was  going  on?  Unanswered. 

The  carriage  began  to  move  slowly.  It  had 
to ;  swift  driving  in  the  Krumerweg  was  hardly 
possible  and  at  no  time  safe.  Carmichael  set 
himself  to  note  the  turns  of  the  street.  One 
turn  after  another  he  counted,  fixing  as  well  as 
he  could  the  topography  of  the  town  through 


270          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

which  they  were  passing.  At  last  he  realized 
that  they  were  leaving  Dreiberg  behind  and 
^ere  going  down  the  mountain  on  the  north  side, 
Jtoward  Jugendheit.  Once  the  level  road  was 
reached,  a  fast  pace  was  set  and  maintained  for 
miles.  At  the  Ehrenstein  barrier  no  question 
was  asked,  and  Carmichael's  one  hope  was  shat 
tered.  At  the  Jugendheit  barrier  the  carriage 
stopped.  There  were  voices.  Carmichael  saw 
the  flicker  of  a  lantern.  His  captors  got  out. 
Presently  there  appeared  at  the  door  an  old  man 
dressed  as  a  mountaineer.  In  his  hand  was  the 
lantern. 

"Pardon  me,  dear  nephew —  Fools!"  he 
broke  off,  swinging  round.  "He  has  tricked  you 
all.  This  is  not  he!" 

Three  astonished  faces  peered  over  the  old 
man's  shoulder.  Carmichael  eyed  them  evilly. 
He  now  saw  that  one  was  a  carter,  another  a 
butcher,  and  the  third  a  baker.  He  had  seen 
them  before,  in  the  Black  Eagle.  But  this  sig 
nified  nothing. 

"Untie  him  and  take  off  that  rag.  It  may  be 
Scharfenstein."  The  old  man  possessed  author 
ity. 


THE    WRONG   MAN          271 

Carmichael,  freed,  stretched  himself. 

"Well?"  he  said,  with  a  dangerous  quiet. 

"Herr  Carmichael,  the  American  consul!" 
The  old  man  nearly  dropped  the  lantern.  "Oh, 
you  infernal  blockheads !" 

"Explanations  are  in  order,"  suggested  Car 
michael. 

"You  are  offered  a  thousand  apologies  for  a 
stupid  mistake.  Now,  may  I  ask  how  you  came 
to  be  dressed  in  these  clothes  on  this  particular 
night?" 

Carmichael's  anger  dissolved,  and  he  laughed. 
All  the  mystery  was  gone  with  the  abruptness  of 
a  mist  under  the  first  glare  of  the  sun.  He  saw 
how  neatly  he  had  been  duped.  He  still  carried 
the  note.  This  he  gave  to  the  leader  of  this 
midnight  expedition. 

"Humph!"  said  the  old  man  in  a  growl.  "I 
thought  as  much."  He  whispered  to  his  com 
panions.  "Herr  Carmichael,  I  shall  have  the 
honor  of  escorting  you  back  to  Dreiberg." 

"But  will  it  be  as  easy  to  go  in  as  it  was  to 
come  out?" 

"Trust  you  for  that.  The  American  consul's 
word  will  be  sufficient  for  our  needs." 


272          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"And  if  I  refuse  to  give  that  word?" 

"In  that  case,  you  will  have  to  use  your  legs," 
curtly. 

"I  prefer  to  ride." 

"Thanks.    I  shall  sit  with  the  driver." 

"That  also  will  please  me." 

"And  you  ask  no  further  questions?" 

"Why  should  I?  I  know  all  I  wish  to  know, 
which  is  more  than  you  would  care  to  have  me." 

The  mountaineer  swore. 

"If  we  talk  any  longer  I  shall  be  late  for 
breakfast." 

"Forward,  then !" 

On  the  way,  it  all  came  back  to  Carmichael 
with  the  vividness  of  a  forgotten  photograph, 
come  upon  suddenly:  Bonn,  the  Rhine,  swift 
and  turbulent,  a  tow-headed  young  fellow  who 
could  not  swim  well,  his  own  plunge,  his  fingers 
in  the  flaxen  hair,  and  the  hard  fight  to  the 
landing ;  all  this  was  a  tale  twice  told. 

Vintner  ?    Not  much ! 


CHAPTER  XVI 

HER    FAN 

IT  was  dawn  when  they  began  to  pull  up  the 
road  to  Dreiberg.  The  return  had  been 
leisurely  despite  Carmichael's  impatience.  In 
the  military  field  the  troops  were  breaking  camp 
for  their  departure  to  the  various  posts  through 
out  the  duchy.  Only  the  officers,  who  were  to 
attend  the  court  ball  that  evening,  and  the  resi 
dent  troops  would  remain.  The  maneuvers  were 
over ;  the  pomp  of  miniature  war  was  done.  Car- 
michael  peered  through  the  window.  What  a 
play  yonder  scene  was  to  what  he  had  been 
through!  To  break  camp  before  dawn,  before 
breakfast,  rain  and  hail  and  snow  smothering 
one;  when  the  frost-bound  iron  of  the  musket 
caught  one's  fingers  and  tore  the  skin ;  the  shriek 
of  shot  overhead,  the  boom  of  cannon  and  the 
gulp  of  impact ;  cold,  hungry,  footsore,  sleepy ; 
here  and  there  a  comrade  crumpling  up  strangely 
273 


274          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

and  lying  still  and  white ;  the  muddy  ruts  in  the 
road ;  the  whole  world  a  dead  gray  like  the  face 
of  death !  What  did  those  yonder  know  of  war  ? 

The  carriage  stopped. 

"I  shall  not  intrude,  I  trust?"  said  the  old 
man,  opening  the  door  and  getting  in. 

"Not  now,"  replied  Carmichael.  "What  is  all 
this  about?" 

"A  trifle ;  I  might  say  a  damn-fool  trifle.  But 
what  did  you  mean  when  you  said  you  knew  all 
you  wanted  to  know  ?"  The  mountaineer  showed 
some  anxiety. 

"Exactly  what  I  said.  The  only  thing  that 
confuses  me  is  the  motive." 

The  old  man  thought  for  a  while.  "Suppose 
you  had  a  son  who  was  making  a  fool  of  him 
self?" 

"Or  a  nephew?" 

"Well,  or  a  nephew?" 

"Making  a  fool  of  himself  over  what?" 

"A  woman." 

"Nothing  unusual  in  that.  But  what  kind  of 
a  woman  ?" 

"A  good  woman,  honest,  too  good  by  far  for 
any  man." 


HER   FAN  275 

"Oh!" 

"Suppose  she  was  vastly  his  inferior  in  sta 
tion,  that  marriage  to  him  was  merely  a  political 
contract?  What  would  you  do?" 

"I  believe  I  begin  to  understand." 

"I  am  grateful  for  that." 

"But  the  risks  you  run !" 

"I  believed  them  all  over  last  night." 

"But  you  would  dare  handle  him  in  this  way  ?" 

"When  the  devil  drives,  my  friend!"  The 
other  smiled.  "I  was  born  in  the  heart  of  a  war. 
I  have  taken  so  many  risks  that  the  sense  of  dan 
ger  no  longer  has  a  keen  edge.  But  now  that 
you  understand,  I  am  sure  a  soldier  like  your 
self  will  pardon  the  blunder  of  last  night." 

"Your  nephew  is  an  ungrateful  wretch." 

"What?"  coldly. 

"He  knew  all  along  who  I  was.  I  dragged 
him  out  of  the  Rhine  upon  a  certain  day,  and 
he  plays  this  trick !" 

"You  ?  Carmichael,  Carmichael ;  of  course ;  I 
should  have  remembered  the  name,  as  he  wrote 
me  at  the  time.  Thank  you!  And  you  knew 
him  all  the  while?" 

"No;  I  recalled  his  face,  but  the  time  and 


276          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

place  were  in  the  dark  till  this  early  morning. 
Here  we  are  at  the  gates.  What's  this  ?  Guards  ? 
I  never  saw  them  at  these  gates  before." 

"You  will  make  yourself  known  to  them?" 

"Yes.    But  if  they  question  me  ?" 

"Wink.  Every  soldier  knows  what  that 
means." 

"When  a  fellow  turns  in  early  in  the  morn 
ing?"  Carmichael  laughed  hilariously. 

"I  ask  you  frankly  not  to  let  them  question 
me.  When  I  left  the  city  last  night  I  never  ex 
pected  to  return." 

"I'll  do  what  I  can." 

Carmichael  bared  his  head  and  leaned  out  of 
the  window.  He  recognized  one  of  the  guards. 
A  policeman  in  military  uniform ! 

"Good  morning !"  said  Carmichael. 

"Herr  Carmichael?"  surprised.  "Your  excel 
lency?" 

"Yes.  I've  been  having  a  little  junket,  I  and 
my  friend  here."  And  Carmichael  winked. 

"Ah!" 

"But  what—" 

"Sh!  Very  important  affair,"  said  the  dis 
guised  officer.  "Go  on." 


HER   FAN  277 

But  after  the  carriage  had  passed  it  occurred 
to  him  that  Carmichael  wore  a  dress  like  a  vint 
ner's  and  that  his  friend  was  a  mountaineer! 
Du  lieber  Himmel!  What  kind  of  a  mix-up  was 
this?  The  chancellor  never  could  have  meant 
Carmichael ! 

"Thanks  !"  whispered  the  old  man. 

"Did  you  see  the  soldier?" 

"Yes." 

"He  is  one  of  the  police  in  disguise.  Be  on 
your  guard.  If  you  don't  mind  I'll  use  this  car 
riage  to  the  hotel." 

"You  are  a  thousand  times  welcome.  I  will 
leave  you  here.  And  take  the  advice  of  an  old 
man  who  has  seen  the  four  sides  of  humanity: 
leave  falling  in  love  to  poets  and  to  fools  !" 

The  mountaineer  got  out  quickly,  closed  the 
door,  spoke  a  word  to  the  driver,  and  slipped 
into  an  alleyway. 

Carmichael  arrived  at  the  Grand  Hotel  in  time 
to  see  her  serene  highness,  accompanied  by  two 
of  her  ladies  and  an  escort  of  four  soldiers,  start 
out  for  her  morning  ride.  The  zest  of  his  own 
strange  adventure  died.  He  waited  till  they  had 
passed,  then  slunk  into  the  hotel.  The  concierge 


278          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

gazed  at  him  in  amazement.  Carmichael  winked. 
The  concierge  smiled.  He  understood.  Amer- 
icaner  or  Ehrensteiner,  the  young  fellows  were 
all  the  same. 

"Police  at  the  gates,"  mused  Carmichael,  as 
he  soaked  his  head  and  face  in  cold  water.  "By 
George,  it  looks  as  if  my  friend  the  vintner  was 
in  for  some  excitement !  Far  be  it  that  I  should 
warn  him.  He  had  his  little  joke;  I  can  wait 
for  mine." 

Gretchen !  Carmichael  stopped,  his  collar  but 
half-way  around  his  throat.  Gretchen,  brave, 
kindly,  beautiful  Gretchen !  Now,  by  the  Lord, 
that  should  not  be!  He  would  wring  the  vint 
ner's  neck.  He  snapped  the  collar  viciously. 
He  was  not  in  an  amiable  mood  this  fair  Septem 
ber  morning.  And  when  some  one  hammered 
on  the  door  he  called  sharply. 

Grumbach  entered. 

"You  are  angry  about  something,"  he  said. 

"So  I  am,  but  you  are  always  welcome." 

"You  have  overslept?" 

"No ;  on  the  contrary." 

"Poker?" 

"After  a  fashion,"  said  Carmichael,  the  gram* 


HER   FAN  279 

ble  gone  from  his  voice.  "I  was  beaten  by  three 
of  a  kind." 

"So?" 

"But  I  found  a  good  hand  later." 

"What?" 

"Kings." 

"Four?" 

"Oh,  no ;  only  one.    I  haven't  drawn  yet." 

"You  are  not  telling  me  all." 

"No.    You  are  going  to  the  ball  to-night  ?" 

"I  would  not  miss  it  for  five  thousand  crowns," 
sadly. 

"You  look  as  if  you  were  going  to  a  funeral 
instead  of  the  greatest  event  of  the  year  in  Drei- 
berg." 

"I  didn't  sleep  well  either." 

"Out?" 

"No ;  one  does  not  have  to  go  out  in  order  not 
to  sleep." 

"I'd  like  to  know  what's  going  on  in  that  bul 
let-head  of  yours." 

"Nothing  is  going  on;  everything  has 
stopped." 

"Can't  you  make  a  confidant  of  me,  Hans?" 

"Not  yet,  Captain." 


280          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"When  you  are  ready  it  may  be  too  late.  I 
leave  Dreiberg  for  good  in  a  few  weeks." 

"No!"  For  the  first  time  Grumbach  showed 
interest. 

"I  have  resigned  the  consulship." 

"And  for  what  reason  ?" 

Carmichael  silently  drew  on  his  coat. 

"Achl    So  you  have  one,  too?" 

"One  what?" 

"One  secret." 

"Yes.    But  it's  the  kind  we  can't  talk  about." 

"I  understand.    Have  you  had  breakfast?" 

"No." 

"Neither  have  I.  Let  us  go  together.  It  may 
be  we  need  each  other's  company  this  morn 
ing.  You  and  I  won't  have  to  bother  about  talk- 
ing." 

"You  make  a  good  comrade,  Hans." 

There  was  a  large  crowd  outside  the  palace 
that  night,  which  was  clear  and  starry.  A 
troop  of  cavalry  patrolled  the  fence.  Carriage 
after  carriage  rolled  in  through  the  gates,  com 
ing  directly  from  the  opera.  It  was  eleven 
o'clock.  All  the  great  in  the  duchy  were  on 


HER   FAN  281 

hand  that  night.  Often  a  cheer  rose  from  the 
ranks  of  the  outsiders  as  some  popular  general 
or  some  famous  beauty  passed.  It  was  an  or 
derly  crowd,  jostling  anjd!  good-natured,  held 
only  by  curiosity.  Every  window  in  the  palace 
presented  a  glowing  square  of  light ;  and  beams 
crisscrossed  the  emerald  lawns  and  died  in  the 
arms  of  the  lurking  shadows.  The  gardens  were 
illuminated  besides.  It  was  fairy-land,  paid  for 
by  those  who  were  not  entitled  to  enter.  Few, 
however,  thought  of  this  inconsistency.  A  duchy 
is  a  duchy ;  nothing  more  need  be  said. 

Carmichael  was  naturally  democratic.  To 
ride  a  block  in  a  carriage  was  to  him  a  waste  of 
time.  And  he  rather  liked  to  shoulder  into  a 
press.  With  the  aid  of  his  cane  and  a  frequent 
push  of  the  elbow  he  worked  his  way  to  the  gates. 
And  close  by  the  sentry-box  he  saw  Gretchen 
and  her  vintner.  Carmichael  could  not  resist 
stopping  a  moment.  He  raised  his  hat  to 
Gretchen,  to  the  wonder  of  those  nearest.  The 
vintner  would  have  gladly  disappeared,  but  the 
human  wall  behind  made  this  impossible.  But 
he  was  needlessly  alarmed.  Carmichael  only 
smiled  ironically. 


282          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"Do  you  know  where  the  American  consulate 
is?"  he  asked  low,  so  that  none  but  Gretchen 
and  the  vintner  heard. 

"Yes,"  said  the  vintner,  blushing  with  shame. 
"I  live  above  the  agency." 

"Good !  I  shall  expect  to  see  you  in  the  morn 
ing." 

But  the  vintner  was  determined  that  he 
shouldn't.  He  would  be  at  work  in  the  royal 
vineyards  on  the  morrow. 

"To-morrow?"  repeated  Gretchen,  to  whom 
this  by-play  was  a  blank.  "Why  should  he  wish 
to  see  you  ?" 

"Who  knows?  Let  us  be  going.  They  are 
pressing  us  too  close  to  the  gates." 

"Very  well,"  acquiesced  Gretchen,  somewhat 
disappointed.  She  wanted  to  see  all  there  was 
to  be  seen. 

"It  is  half -after  ten,"  he  added,  as  if  to  put 
forward  some  logical  excuse  for  leaving  at  this 
moment. 

A  man  followed  them  all  the  way  to  the 
Krumerweg. 

Carmichael  threw  himself  eagerly  into  the 
gaiety  of  the  dance.  Never  had  he  seen  the  ball- 


HER   FAN 

room  so  brilliant  with  color.  Among  all  those 
there  his  was  the  one  somber  dress.  The  white 
cambric  stock  and  the  frill  in  his  shirt  were  the 
only  gay  touches.  It  was  not  his  fault:  the  rules 
of  the  service  compelled  him  thus  to  dress.  But 
he  needed  no  brass  or  cloth  of  gold.  There  was 
not  a  male  head  among  all  the  others  to  compare 
with  his. 

He  was  an  accomplished  waltzer,  after  the 
manner  of  that  day,  when  one  went  round  and 
round  like  some  mechanical  toy  wound  up. 
Strauss  and  Waldteuf el  tingled  his  feet ;  and  he 
whirled  ambassadors'  wives  till  they  were  breath 
less  and  ambassadors'  daughters  till  they  no 
longer  knew  or  cared  where  they  were.  He  was 
full  of  subtle  deviltry  this  night,  with  an  under 
current  of  malice  toward  every  one  and  himself 
in  particular.  This  would  be  the  last  affair  of 
the  kind  for  him,  and  he  wanted  a  full  memory 
of  it.  Between  times  he  exchanged  a  jest  or 
two  with  the  chancellor  or  talked  battles  with  old 
Ducwitz;  twice  he  caught  the  grand  duke's  eye, 
but  there  was  only  a  friendly  nod  from  that 
august  personage,  no  invitation  to  talk.  Thrice, 
while  on  the  floor,  her  highness  passed  him;  but 


284          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

there  was  never  a  smile,  never  a  glance.  He  be 
came  careless  and  reckless.  He  would  seek  her 
and  talk  to  her  and  smile  at  her  even  if  the  duke 
threw  a  regiment  in  between.  The  Irish  blood 
in  him  burned  to-night,  capable  of  any  folly. 

He  no  longer  danced.  He  waited  and  watched ; 
and  it  was  during  one  of  these  waits  that  he  saw 
Grumbach  in  the  gallery. 

"Now,  what  the  devil  is  the  Dutchman  doing 
with  a  pair  of  opera-glasses !" 

It  required  some  time  and  patience  to  discover 
the  object  of  this  singular  attention  on  the  part 
of  Grumbach.  Carmichael  was  finally  convinced 
that  this  object  was  no  less  a  person  than  her 
serene  highness ! 

Later  her  highness  stood  before  one  of  the 
long  windows  in  the  conservatory,  listlessly 
watching  the  people  in  the  square.  And  these 
poor  fools  envied  her!  To  envy  her,  who  was  a 
prisoner,  a  chattel  to  be  exchanged  for  war's 
immunity,  who  was  a  princess  in  name  but  a 
cipher  in  fact!  All  was  wrong  with  the  world. 
She  had  stolen  out  of  the  ball-room ;  the  craving 
to  be  alone  had  been  too  strong.  Little  she  cared 
whether  they  missed  her  or  not.  She  left  the 


HER    FAN  285 

window  and  sat  on  one  of  the  divans,  idly  open 
ing  and  shutting  her  fan.  Was  that  some  one 
coming  for  her?  She  turned. 

It  was  Carmichael. 

What  an  opportunity  for  scandal!  She 
laughed  inwardly.  The  barons  and  their  wives, 
the  ambassadors'  wives  and  their  daughters, 
would  miss  them  both.  And  the  spirit  of  devil 
try  lay  also  upon  her  heart.  She  smiled  at  the 
man  and  with  her  fan  bade  him  be  seated  at  her 
side.  The  divinity  that  hedges  in  a  king  did 
not  bother  either  of  them  just  then. 

"You  have  not  asked  me  to  dance  to-night," 
she  declared. 

"I  know  it." 

"Why?" 

"I  am  neither  a  prince  nor  an  ambassador." 

"But  you  have  danced  with  me." 

**Yes ;  I  have  been  to  Heaven  now  and  then." 

"And  do  you  eject  yourself  thus  easily?" 

"By  turning  myself  out  my  self-esteem  re 
mains  unruffled." 

"Then  you  expected  to  be  turned  out?" 

"Sooner  or  later." 

"Why?" 


286         THE    GOOSE   GIRL 

Again  that  word!  To  him  it  was  the  most 
tantalizing  word  in  the  language.  It  crucified 
him. 

"Why?"  she  repeated,  her  eyes  soft  and 
dreamy. 

"As  I  have  said,  I  am  not  a  prince.  I  am  only 
a  consul,  not  even  a  diplomat,  simply  a  business 
arm  of  my  government.  My  diplomacy  never 
ascends  above  the  quality  of  hops  and  wines  im 
ported.  I  am  supposed  to  take  in  any  wander 
ing  sailor,  feed  him,  and  ship  him  home.  I  am 
also  the  official  guide  of  all  American  tourists." 

"That  is  no  reason." 

"Your  father — "  He  should  have  said  the 
grand  duke. 

"Ah,  yes ;  my  father,  the  chancellor,  the  am 
bassadors,  and  their  wives  and  daughters !    I  be 
gin  to  believe  that  you  have  grown  afraid  of 
them." 

"I  confess  that  I  have.  I  had  an  adventure 
last  night.  Would  you  like  to  hear  about  it?" 

How  beautiful  she  was  in  that  simple  gown  of 
white,  unadorned  by  any  jewels  save  the  little 
crown  of  sparkling  white  stones  in  her  hair ! 

"Tell  me." 


HER    FAN  287 

He  was  a  good  story-teller.  It  was  a  crisp 
narrative  he  made. 

"A  veiled  lady,"  she  mused.  "What  would 
you  say  if  I  told  you  that  your  mystery  is  no 
mystery  at  all?  I  am  the  veiled  lady.  And  the 
person  I  went  to  see  was  my  old  nurse,  my  foster- 
mother,  with  whom  I  spent  the  happiest,  freest 
days  of  my  life,  in  the  garret  at  Dresden.  Pouf ! 
All  mysteries  may  be  dispelled  if  we  go  to  the 
right  person.  So  you  are  to  be  recalled?" 

"I  have  asked  for  my  recall,  your  Highness." 

"And  so  Dreiberg  no  longer  appeals  to  you? 
You  once  told  me  that  you  loved  it." 

"I  am  cursed  with  wanderlust,  your  High 
ness."  He  regretted  that  he  had  not  remained  in, 
the  ball-room.  He  was  in  great  danger. 

"You  promised  to  tell  me  what  she  is  like." 

Suddenly  all  his  fear  went  away,  all  his  trepi 
dation  ;  the  spirit  of  recklessness  which  had  vised 
him  a  little  while  ago  again  empowered  him.  He 
was  afraid  of  nothing.  His  face  flushed  and 
there  were  bright  points  of  fire  in  his  eyes.  She 
saw  what  she  had  roused,  and  grew  afraid  her 
self.  She  pretended  to  become  interested  in  the 
Watteau  cupids  on  her  fan. 


£88          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"How  shall  I  describe  her?"  he  said.  "I  have 
seen  only  paintings  and  marbles,  and  these  are 
inanimate.  I  have  never  seen  angels,  so  I  can 
not  draw  a  comparison  there.  Have  you  ever 
seen  ripe  wheat  in  a  rain-storm?  That  is  the 
color  of  her  hair.  There  is  jade  and  lapis-lazuli 
in  her  eyes.  And  Ole  Bull  could  not  imitate  the 
music  of  her  voice."  He  leaned  toward  her. 
"And  I  love  her  better  than  life,  better  than 
hope;  and  between  us  there  is  the  distance  of  a 
thousand  worlds.  So  I  must  give  up  the  dream 
and  go  away,  as  an  honorable  man  should." 

Neither  of  them  heard  the  chancellor's  ap 
proach. 

"And  because  I  love  her." 

The  fan  in  her  hand  slipped  unheeded  to  the 
floor. 

"Your  Highness,"  broke  in  the  cold  even  tones 
of  Herbeck,  "your  father  is  making  inquiries 
about  you." 

Carmichael  rose  instantly,  white  as  the  frill  in 
his  shirt. 

Hildegarde,  however,  was  a  princess.  She 
gained  her  feet  leisurely,  with  half  a  smile  on 
her  lips. 


HER    FAN  289 

"Count,  Herr  Carmichael  tells  me  that  he  is 
soon  to  leave  Dreiberg." 

"Ah!"  There  was  satisfaction  in  Herbeck's 
ejaculation,  satisfaction  of  a  frank  order.  But 
there  was  a  glint  of  admiration  in  his  eyes  as  he 
recognized  the  challenge  in  Carmichael's.  He 
saw  that  he  must  step  carefully  in  regard  to  this 
hot-headed  young  Irishman.  "We  shall  miss 
Herr  Carmichael." 

Her  highness  moved  serenely  toward  the  door. 
Carmichael  waited  till  she  was  gone  from  sight, 
then  he  stooped  and  picked  up  the  fan.  Herbeck 
at  once  held  out  his  hand. 

"Give  it  to  me,  Herr  Captain,"  he  said,  with 
a  melancholy  gentleness.  "I  will  return  it  to  her 
highness." 

Carmichael  deliberately  thrust  the  fan  into  a 
pocket  and  shook  his  head. 

"Your  Excellency,!  do  not  know  how  long  you 
stood  behind  us,  but  you  were  there  long  enough 
to  learn  that  I  have  surrendered  my  dream. 
Nothing  but  force  will  cause  me  to  surrender  this 
fan." 

"Keep  it,  then,  my  son,"  replied  the  chancellor, 
with  good  understanding. 


CHAPTER    XVII 

AFTER    THE    VINTAGE 

THE  ducal  vineyards  covered  some  forty 
acres  of  rich  hillside.  All  day  long  the 
sun  beat  squarely  upon  the  clustering  fruit.  A 
low  rambling  building  of  stone  covered  the 
presses  and  bottling  departments,  and  was  with 
in  comparatively  easy  distance  of  the  city.  Dur 
ing  the  vintage  several  hundred  men  and  women 
found  employment.  The  grand  duke  derived  a 
comfortable  private  revenue  from  these  wines, 
the  Tokay  being  scarcely  inferior  to  that  made 
in  Hungary.  There  was  a  large  brewery  be 
sides,  which  supplied  all  the  near-by  cities  and 
towns.  The  German  noble,  be  he  king,  duke,  or 
baron,  has  always  been  more  or  less  a  merchant ; 
and  it  did  not  embarrass  the  grand  duke  of 
Ehrenstein  in  the  least  to  see  his  coat  of  arms 
burnt  into  oaken  wine-casks. 
290 


AFTER    THE    VINTAGE     291 

A  former  steward  had  full  charge  of  the  busi 
ness,  personally  hiring  and  paying  the  help  and 
supervising  the  various  branches.  He  was  a 
gruff  old  fellow,  just  and  honest;  and  once  you 
entered  his  employ  he  was  as  much  a  martinet  as 
any  captain  at  sea.  The  low  cunning  of  the 
peasant  never  eluded  his  watchful  eye.  He  knew 
to  the  last  pound  of  grapes  how  much  wine  there 
should  be,  how  much  beer  to  the  last  measure  of 
hops. 

The  entrance  to  the  vineyards  was  made 
through  a  small  lodge  where  the  ducal  vintner 
lived,  and  kept  his  books  and  moneys  till  such 
time  as  he  should  be  required  to  place  them  be 
fore  the  proper  official. 

Upon  this  brave  morning,  the  one  following 
the  ball  at  the  palace,  the  vintner  was  reclining 
against  the  outside  wall  of  the  gates,  smoking  his 
china-pipe  and  generally  at  peace  with  the  world. 
The  bloom  was  early  upon  the  grape,  work  was 
begun,  and  the  vintage  promised  to  be  excep 
tionally  fine.  Through  a  drifting  cloud  of  smoke 
he  discerned  a  solitary  figure  approaching  from 
the  direction  of  Dreiberg,  a  youthful  figure, 
buoyant  of  step,  and  confident.  Herr  Hoffman 


292          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

was  rather  interested.  Ordinarily  the  peasant 
who  came  to  this  gate  had  his  hat  in  his  hand  and 
his  feet  were  laggard.  Not  so  this  youth.  He 
paused  at  the  gate  and  inspected  the  old  man 
highly. 

"Herr  Hoffman?" 

"Yes." 

"I  want  work." 

"So?  What  can  you  do?"  He  was  a  clean 
youngster,  this,  but  there  was  something  in  his 
eyes  that  vaguely  disturbed  the  head  vintner.  It 
was  like  mockery  more  than  anything  else. 

The  youth  recounted  his  abilities,  and  Hoff 
man  was  gracious  enough  to  admit  that  he 
seemed  to  know  what  he  was  talking  about. 

"I  have  a  letter  to  you  also." 

"Ach!  We  shall  be  properly  introduced  now," 
said  Hoffman,  growling.  "Let  me  see  it." 

He  saw  it,  but  with  starting  eyes.  There  was, 
then,  something  new  under  the  sun?  A  picker  of 
grapes,  recommended  by  a  princess !  He  turned 
the  letter  inside  out,  but  found  no  illumination. 

"Du  lieber  Gott!    You  are  Leopold  Dietrich?" 

"Yes,  Herr." 

"How  did  you  come  by  this  letter  ?" 


AFTER    THE    VINTAGE     293 

"Her  serene  highness  is  patron  to  Gretchen, 
the  goose-girl,  at  whose  request  the  recommenda 
tion  was  given  me." 

This  altered  matters.  "Follow  me,"  said 
Hoffman. 

The  two  entered  the  office. 

"Can  you  write?" 

"A  little,  Herr." 

"Then  write  your  name  on  this  piece  of  paper 
and  that.  Each  night  you  will  present  yours 
with  the  number  of  pounds,  which  will  be  credited 
to  you.  You  must  bring  it  back  each  morning. 
If  you  lose  it  you  will  be  paid  nothing  for  your 
labor." 

Dietrich  wrote  his  name  twice.  It  was  rather 
hard  work,  for  he  screwed  up  his  mouth  and 
cramped  his  fingers.  Still,  Hoffman  was  not 
wholly  satisfied  with  his  eyes. 

"Gottlieb,"  he  said  to  one  of  the  men,  "take 
him  to  terrace  ninety-eight.  That  hasn't  been 
touched  yet.  We'll  see  what  sort  of  workman 
he  is."  He  spoke  to  Dietrich  again.  "What  is 
Gretchen  to  you?"  For  Hoffman  knew  Gretchen ; 
many  a  time  she  had  filled  her  basket  and  drawn 
her  crowns. 


294*          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"She  is  my  sweetheart,  Herr."  And  there  was 
no  mockery  in  the  youth's  eyes  as  he  said  this. 

"Take  him  along,  Gottlieb.  You  will  have  no 
further  use  for  this  letter  from  her  highness,  so 
I'll  keep  it  and  frame  it  and  hang  it  in  the  office." 
Which  showed  that  Hoffman  himself  had  had 
lessons  in  the  gentle  art  of  mockery. 

Terrace  ninety-eight  was  given  over  to  small 
grapes ;  thus,  many  bunches  had  to  be  picked  to 
fill  the  basket.  But  Dietrich  went  to  work  with 
a  will.  His  fingers  were  deft  and  his  knife  was 
sharp;  and  by  midsun  he  had  turned  his  sixth 
basket,  which  was  fair  work,  considering. 

As  Hoffman  did  not  feed  his  employees,  Die 
trich  was  obliged  to  beg  from  his  co-workers. 
Very  willingly  they  shared  with  him  their  coarse 
bread  and  onions.  He  ate  the  bread  and  stuffed 
the  onions  in  his  pocket.  There  was  no  idling. 
As  soon  as  the  frugal  meal  was  over,  the  peas 
ants  trooped  away  to  their  respective  terraces. 
Once  more  the  youth  was  alone.  He  set  down  his 
basket  and  laughed.  Was  there  ever  such  a  fine 
world?  Had  there  ever  been  a  more  likable  ad 
venture?  The  very  danger  of  it  was  the  spice 
which  gave  it  flavor.  He  stretched  out  his  arms 


AFTER    THE    VINTAGE     295 

as  if  to  embrace  this  world  which  appeared  so 
rosal,  so  joyous  to  his  imagination. 

"Thanks,  thanks !  You  have  given  me  youth, 
and  I  accept  it,"  he  said  aloud,  perhaps  address 
ing  that  mutable  goddess  who  presides  over  all 
follies.  "Regret  it  in  my  old  age?  Not  I!  I 
shall  have  lived  for  one  short  month.  Youth  was 
given  to  us  to  enjoy,  and  I  propose  to  press  the 
grape  to  the  final  drop.  And  when  I  grow  old 
this  adventure  shall  be  the  tonic  to  wipe  out  many 
wrinkles  of  care.  A  mad  fling,  a  brimming  cup, 
one  short  merry  month — and  then,  the  reckon 
ing  !  How  I  hate  the  thought !" 

He  sobered ;  the  laughter  went  out  of  his  eyes 
and  face.  Changeful  twenty,  where  so  many 
paths  reach  out  into  the  great  world,  paths 
straight  and  narrow,  of  devious  turnings  which 
end  at  precipices,  of  blind  alleys  which  lead  no 
where  and  close  in  behind ! 

"I  love  her,  I  love  her !"  His  face  grew  bright 
again,  and  the  wooing  blood  ran  tingling  in  his 
veins.  "Am  I  a  thief,  a  scoundrelly  thief,  be 
cause  I  have  that  right  common  to  all  men,  to 
love  one  woman?  Some  day  I  shall  suffer  for 
this ;  some  day  my  heart  shall  ache ;  so  be  it !" 


296          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

The  sun  began  the  downward  circle ;  the  shad 
ows  crept  eastward  and  imperceptibly  grew 
longer;  a  gray  tone  settled  under  the  stones  at 
his  feet.  Sometimes  he  sang,  sometimes  he  stood 
dreaming.  His  fingers  were  growing  sore  and 
sticky  and  there  was  a  twinge  in  his  back  as  he 
shouldered  his  eighth  basket  and  scrambled  down 
to  the  man  who  weighed  the  pick.  He  was  be 
ginning  his  ninth  when  he  saw  Gretchen  coming 
along  the  purple  aisle.  She  waved  a  hand  in 
welcome,  and  he  sheathed  his  knife.  No  more 
work  this  day  for  him.  He  waited. 

"What  a  beautiful  day !"  said  Gretchen,  with 
a  happy  laugh. 

"Aye,  what  a  day  for  love !" 

"And  work!" 

"Kiss  me!" 

"When  you  fill  that  basket." 

"Not  before?" 

"Not  even  a  little  one,"  mischief  in  her  glance. 

Out  came  the  knife  and  the  vintner  plied  him 
self  furiously.  Gretchen  had  a  knife  of  her  own, 
and  she  joined  him.  They  laughed  gaily.  Snip, 
snip ;  bunch  by  bunch  the  contents  of  the  basket 
grew. 


AFTER    THE    VINTAGE     297 

"There !"  he  said  at  last.  "That's  what  I  call 
•work ;  but  it  is  worth  it.  Now !" 

Gretchen  saw  that  it  would  be  futile  to  hold 
him  off  longer ;  what  she  would  not  give  he  would 
of  a  surety  take.  So  she  put  her  hands  behind 
her  back,  closed  her  eyes,  and  raised  her  chin. 
He  kissed  not  only  the  lovely  mouth,  but  the  eyes 
and  cheeks  and  hair. 

"Gretchen,  you  are  as  good  and  beautiful  as 
an  angel." 

"What  are  angels  like?" 

"An  angel  is  the  most  beautiful  woman  a  poet 
can  describe  or  imagine." 

"Then  there  are  no  men  angels  ?" 

"Only  Gabriel ;  at  least  I  never  heard  of  any 
other." 

"Then  I  do  not  want  to  be  an  angel.  I  had 
rather  be  what  I  am.  Besides,  angels  do  not  have 
tempers  ;  they  do  not  long  for  things  they  should 
not  have ;  they  have  no  sweethearts."  She  caught 
him  roughly  by  the  arms.  "Ah,  if  anything 
should  happen  to  you,  I  should  die !  It  seems  as 
though  I  had  a  hundred  hearts  and  that  they 
had  all  melted  into  one  for  love  of  you.  Do  men 
love  as  women  love?  Is  it  everything  and  all 


298          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

things,  or  only  an  incident?  I  would  give  up  my 
soul  to  you  if  you  asked  for  it." 

"I  ask  only  for  your  love,  Gretchen;  only 
that."  And  he  pressed  her  hands.  "All  men  are 
rogues,  more  or  less.  There  are  so  many  cur 
rents  and  eddies  entering  into  a  man's  life.  It  is 
made  up  of  a  thousand  variant  interests.  No, 
man's  love  is  never  like  a  woman's.  But  remem 
ber  this,  Gretchen,  I  loved  you  the  best  I  knew 
how,  as  a  man  loves  but  once,  honorably  as  it  was 
possible,  purely  and  dearly." 

The  shade  of  trouble  crossed  her  face. 

"Why  are  you  always  talking  like  that?  Do 
I  not  know  that  you  love  me?  Have  I  not  my 
dowry,  and  are  we  not  to  be  married  after  the 
vintage?" 

"But  your  singing?" 

"Singing?  Why,  my  voice  belongs  to  you; 
for  your  sake  I  wish  to  be  great,  for  no  other 
reason." 

He  ripped  a  bunch  of  grapes  from  the  vine, 
a  thing  no  careful  vintner  should  do,  and  held  it 
toward  h?r. 

"Have  you  ever  heard  of  the  kissing  cher 
ries  ?"  he  asked. 


AFTER    THE    VINTAGE     299 

She  shook  her  head.    He  explained. 

"This  bunch  will  do  very  well." 

He  took  one  grape  at  the  bottom  in  his  teeth. 
Gingerly  Gretchen  did  the  same.  Their  lips  met 
in  a  smothered  laughter.  Then  they  tried  it 
again. 

And  this  Watteau  picture  met  the  gaze  of  two 
persons  on  the  terrace  below.  The  empurpling 
face  of  one  threatened  an  explosion,  but  the  smil 
ing  face  of  the  other  restrained  this  vocal  thun 
der.  The  old  head  vintner  kicked  a  stone 
savagely,  and  at  this  rattling  noise  Gretchen  and 
her  lover  turned.  They  beheld  the  steward,  and 
peering  over  his  shoulder  the  amused  counte 
nance  of  the  Princess  Hildegarde. 

"You — "  began  the  steward,  no  longer  able  to 
contain  himself. 

"Patience,  Hoffman!"  warned  her  highness. 
Then  she  laughed  blithely.  It  was  such  a  charm 
ing  picture,  and  never  had  she  seen  a  handsomer 
pair  of  bucolic  lovers.  A  sudden  pang  drove  the 
merriment  from  her  face.  Ah,  but  she  envied 
Gretchen!  For  the  peasant  there  was  freedom, 
there  was  the  chosen  mate ;  but  for  the  princess — 

"Your  hat,  scoundrel !"  cried  Hoffman. 


300          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

The  vintner  snatched  off  his  hat  apologetically 
and  swung  it  round  on  the  tips  of  his  fingers. 

"Is  this  the  way  you  work  ?" 

"I  have  picked  nine  baskets." 

"You  should  have  picked  twelve." 

It  interested  her  highness  to  note  that  this 
handsome  young  fellow  was  not  afraid  of  the 
head  vintner.  So  this  was  Gretchen's  lover? 
He  was  really  handsome;  there  was  nothing 
coarse  about  his  features  or  figure.  !And  pres 
ently  she  realized  that  he  was  returning  her 
scrutiny  with  interest.  He  had  never  seen  her 
highness  at  close  range  before,  and  he  now  saw 
that  Gretchen  was  more  beautiful  only  because 
he  saw  her  through  the  eyes  of  a  lover. 

The  pause  was  broken  by  Gretchen. 

"Pardon,  Highness !" 

"For  what,  Gretchen?" 

"For  not  having  seen  your  approach." 

"That  was  my  fault,  not  yours.  When  is  the 
wedding?" 

"After  the  vintage,  Highness." 

Her  highness  then  spoke  to  the  bridegroom- 
elect.  "You  will  be  good  to  her  ?" 

"Who  could  help  it,  your  Highness  ?" 


AFTER    THE    VINTAGE     301 

The  pronoun  struck  her  oddly,  for  peasants  as 
a  usual  thing  never  used  it  in  addressing  the  no 
bility. 

"Well,  on  the  day  of  the  wedding  I  will  stand 
sponsor  to  you  both.  And  good  luck  go  with 
you.  Come,  Hoffman ;  my  horse  will  be  restive 
and  my  men  impatient." 

She  passed  down  the  aisle,  and  the  head  vint 
ner  followed,  wagging  his  head.  He  was  not  at 
all  satisfied  with  that  tableau.  He  employed  men 
to  work ;  he  wanted  no  love-affairs  inside  his  vine 
yards.  As  for  her  highness,  she  had  come  for 
the  sole  purpose  of  seeing  Gretchen's  lover ;  and 
it  occurred  to  her  that  the  really  desirable  men 
were  generally  unencumbered  by  titles. 

"He  will  discharge  me,"  said  the  young  vint 
ner  gloomily. 

"He  will  not  dare,"  returned  Gretchen.  "We 
have  done  nothing  wrong.  Her  highness  will 
stand  by  us.  It  must  be  five  o'clock,"  looking  at 
the  sun. 

"In  that  case,  no  more  work  for  the  day." 

He  swung  the  basket  to  his  shoulder,  and  the 
sun,  flashing  upon  its  contents,  turned  the 
bloomy  globes  into  dull  rubies.  He  presented  his 


302          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

card  at  the  office  and  was  duly  credited  with  three 
crowns,  which,  according  to  Gretchen,  was  a  fine 
day's  work.  Hoffman  said  nothing  about  dis 
missal. 

"Come  day  after  to-morrow;  to-morrow  is  a 
feast-day.  You  are  always  having  feast-days 
when  work  begins.  All  summer  long  you  loaf 
about,  but  the  minute  you  start  to  work  you  must 
find  excuses  to  lay  off.  Clear  out,  both  of  you !" 

"Work  at  last,"  said  Dietrich,  as  he  and 
Gretchen  started  for  the  city.  "If  I  can  get  a 
position  in  the  brewery  for  the  winter  I  shall  be 
rich." 

"Oh,  the  beautiful  world !" 

"Do  you  recall  the  first  day  I  met  you?"  he 
asked. 

"Yes.  A  little  more  and  that  dog  would  have 
killed  the  big  gander.  What  little  things  bring 
about  big  ones !  When  I  walked  into  the  city 
that  day,  had  any  one  told  me  that  I  should  fall 
in  love,  I  should  have  laughed." 

"And  I!" 

Arm  in  arm  they  went  on.  Sometimes  Gretch 
en  sang ;  often  he  put  her  hand  to  his  lips.  By 
and  by  they  came  abreast  of  an  old  Gipsy.  He 


AFTER    THE    VINTAGE     303 

wore  a  coat  of  Joseph's,  and  his  face  was  as  lined 
as  a  frost-bitten  apple.  But  his  eyes  were  keen 
and  undimmed,  and  he  walked  confidently  and 
erect,  like  a  man  who  has  always  lived  in  the 
open. 

"Will  you  tell  me  how  to  find  the  Adlergasse?" 
he  asked  in  broken  German.  His  accent  was  that 
of  a  Magyar.  He  had  a  smattering  of  a  dozen 
tongues  at  his  command,  for  in  his  time  he  had 
crossed  and  recrossed  the  Danube,  the  Rhine,  and 
the  Rhone. 

They  carelessly  gave  him  specific  directions 
and  passed  on.  He  followed  grimly,  like  fate, 
whose  agent  he  was,  though  long  delayed.  When 
he  reached  the  Adlergasse  he  looked  for  a  sign. 
He  came  to  a  stop  in  front  of  the  dingy  shop  of 
the  clock-mender.  He  went  inside,  and  the  an 
cient  clock-mender  looked  up  from  his  work,  for 
he  was  always  working. 

He  rose  wearily  and  asked  what  he  could  do 
for  his  customer.  His  eyes  were  bothering  him, 
so  the  fact  that  the  man  was  a  Gipsy  did  not  at 
first  impress  him. 

The  Gipsy  smiled  mysteriously  and  laid  a 
hand  on  his  heart. 


304          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"Who  are  you  ?"  sharply  demanded  the  clock- 
mender. 

"Who  I  am  does  not  matter.  I  am  he  whom 
you  seek." 

"God  in  Heaven!"  The  bony  hands  of  the 
clock-mender  shot  out  and  clutched  the  other's 
coat  in  a  grip  which  shook,  so  intense  was  it. 

The  Gipsy  released  himself  slowly.  "But  first 
show  me  your  pretty  crowns  and  the  paper  which 
will  give  me  immunity  from  the  police.  I  know 
something  about  you.  You  never  break  your 
word.  That  is  why  I  came.  Your  crowns,  as 
you  offered,  and  immunity ;  then  I  speak." 

"Man,  I  can  give  you  the  crowns,  but  God 
knows  I  have  no  longer  the  power  to  give  you 
immunity." 

"So?" 

The  Gipsy  shouldered  his  bundle. 

"For  God's  sake,  wait!"  begged  the  clock- 
mender. 

But  the  Gipsy  walked  out,  unheeding. 


CHAPTER    XVIII 

A    WHITE    SCAR 

TWO  days  later,  in  the  afternoon. 
"Grumbach,"    said    Carmichael,    "what 
the  deuce  were  you  looking  at  the  other  night, 
with  those  opera-glasses?" 

"At  the  ball?"  Grumbach  pressed  down  the 
ash  in  his  pipe  and  brushed  his  thumb  on  his 
sleeve.  "I  was  looking  into  the  past." 

"With  a  pair  of  opera-glasses  ?" 

"Yes."    Grumbach  was  perfectly  serious. 

"Oh,  pshaw!  You  were  following  her  high 
ness  with  them.  I  want  to  know  why." 

"She  is  beautiful." 

"You  made  a  promise  to  me  not  long  ago." 

"I  did?"  non-committally. 

"Yes.    Soon  I  shall  be  shaking  the  dust  of 
Dreiberg,  and  I  Want  to  know  beforehand  what 
this  Chinese  puzzle  is.     What  did  you  do  that 
compelled  your  flight  from  Ehrenstein  ?" 
305 


306          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

Grumbach's  pipe  hung  pendulent  in  his  hand. 
He  swung  it  to  and  fro  absently. 

"I  am  waiting.  Remember,  you  are  an  Amer 
ican  citizen,  for  all  that  you  were  born  here.  If 
anything  should  happen  to  you,  I  must  know  the 
whole  story  in  order  to  help  you.  You  know  that 
you  may  trust  me." 

"It  isn't  that,  Captain.  I  have  grown  to  like 
you  in  these  few  days." 

"What  has  that  to  do  with  it?"  impatiently. 

"Nothing,  perhaps.  Only,  if  I  tell  you,  you 
will  not  be  my  friend." 

"Nonsense !  What  you  did  sixteen  years  ago 
doesn't  matter  now.  It  is  enough  for  me  that 
you  fought  in  my  regiment,  and  that  you  were 
a  brave  soldier." 

"Those  opera-glasses;  it  was  an  idea.  Well, 
since  you  will  know.  I  was  a  gardener's  boy.  I 
worked  under  my  brother  Hermann.  I  used  to 
ask  the  nurse,  who  had  charge  of  her  serene 
highness,  where  she  would  go  each  day.  Then 
I'd  cut  flowers  and  meet  them  on  the  road  some 
where  and  give  the  bouquet  to  the  child.  There 
was  never  any  escort;  a  footman  and  a  driver. 
The  little  one  was  always  greatly  pleased,  and 


AWHITESCAR  307 

she  would  call  me  Hans.  I  was  in  love  those 
days."  Grumbach  laughed  with  bitterness. 
"Yes,  even  I.  Her  name  was  Tekla,  and  she  was 
a  jade.  I  wanted  to  run  away,  but  I  had  no 
money.  I  had  already  secured  a  passport ;  no 
matter  how.  It  was  the  first  affair,  and  I  was 
desperately  hurt.  One  day  a  Gipsy  came  to  me. 
I  shall  always  know  him  by  the  yellow  spot  in  one 
of  his  black  eyes.  I  was  given  a  thousand  crowns 
to  tell  him  which  road  her  highness  was  to  be 
driven  over  the  next  day.  As  I  said,  I  was  mad 
with  love.  Why  a  Gipsy  should  want  to  know 
where  her  highness  was  going  to  ride  was  of  no 
consequence  to  me.  I  told  him.  I  was  to  get  the 
money  the  same  night.  It  was  thus  that  her 
highness  was  stolen;  it  was  thus  that  I  became 
accessory  before  the  fact,  as  the  lawyers  say. 
Flight  with  a  band  of  Magyar  Gipsies;  weary 
days  in  the  mountains,  with  detachments  of 
troops  scouring  the  whole  duchy.  Finally  I  es 
caped.  A  fortune  was  offered  for  the  immediate 
return  of  the  child.  At  the  time  I  believed  that  it 
was  an  abduction  for  ransom.  But  no  one  ever 
came  forward  for  the  reward.  There  was  a  price 
on  my  head  when  it  was  known  that  I  had  fled." 


308          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

Grumbach  stared  into  his  pipe  without  seeing 
anything. 

"And  no  one  ever  came  for  the  reward?  That 
is  strange.  Was  immunity  promised?"  asked 
Carmichael. 

"It  was  inferred,  but  not  literally  promised." 

"Fear  kept  them  away." 

"Perhaps.    And  there  is  Arnsberg." 

"Was  he  guilty?" 

"I  never  saw  his  hand  anywhere." 

"So  this  is  the  story !  Well,  when  a  man's  in 
love  he  is,  more  or  less,  in  the  clutch  of  tempo 
rary  insanity."  Carmichael's  tone  wasn't  ex 
actly  cheery. 

"Insanity!  Then  you  do  not  judge  me 
harshly?" 

"No,  Hans.  I've  a  wild  streak  in  me  also. 
But  what  I  can't  understand  is  why  you  return 
and  put  your  head  in  the  lion's  mouth.  The  po 
lice  will  stumble  on  something.  I  tell  you  frank 
ly  that  if  you  are  arrested  I  could  do  little  or 
nothing  for  you.  The  United  States  protects 
only  harmless  political  outcasts.  Yours  is  a  crime 
such  as  nullifies  your  citizenship,  and  any  gov 
ernment  would  be  compelled,  according  to  the 


A    WHITE    SCAR  309 

terms  of  treaty,  to  send  you  back  here,  if  the 
demand  was  made  for  your  extradition." 

"I  know  all  that,"  Grumbach  replied,  dump 
ing  the  ash  into  his  palm  and  casting  it  into  the 
paper-basket. 

"I  suppose  that  when  conscience  drives  we 
must  go  on.  But  the  princess  has  been  found. 
The  best  thing  you  can  do  is  to  put  your  pass 
ports  into  immediate  use  and  return  to  the  States. 
You  can  do  no  good  here." 

"Maybe."  Grumbach  refilled  his  pipe,  lighted 
it,  and  without  saying  more  went  out  and  down 
into  the  street. 

Carmichael  watched  him  through  the  window. 
Cloud  after  cloud  of  smoke  ran  wavering  behind 
the  exile.  He  was  smoking  like  one  deeply  per 
turbed. 

"He's  a  queer  codger,  and  it's  a  queer  story. 
I  don't  believe  I  have  heard  it  all,  either.  What 
was  he  really  hunting  for  with  those  glasses  ?  I 
give  it  up." 

He  was  not  angry  with  Grumbach;  rather  he 
seemed  to  be  drawn  to  him  more  closely  than  ever. 
Mad  with  love.  That  was  the  phrase.  He 
conned  it  over  and  over ;  mad  with  love.  That 


310          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

excused  many  things.  How  strangely  the  chess 
men  were  moved!  Had  Grumbach  not  assisted 
in  the  abduction,  her  highness  would  in  all  prob 
ability  have  grown  up  as  other  princesses,  artifi 
cial,  cold,  reserved,  seldom  touched  by  the  fires 
of  animated  thought  or  action.  In  fact,  had 
things  been  otherwise,  he  never  would  have  rid 
den  with  her  highness  in  the  freshness  of  the 
morning — or  fallen  in  love  with  her.  By  rights 
he  ought  to  curse  Grumbach;  but  for  him  he 
would  still  be  captain  of  his  heart.  Mad  with 
love !  There  was  no  doubt  of  it.  And  the  phrase 
rang  in  his  ear  for  some  time. 

Grumbach  was  indeed  perturbed,  and  this 
sensation  was  the  result  of  what  he  had  not  told 
his  friend.  Gott!  What  was  going  on?  He 
hadn't  the  least  idea  where  his  footsteps  were 
leading  him.  He  went  on,  his  teeth  set  strongly 
on  the  horn  mouthpiece  of  his  pipe,  his  hands 
jammed  in  his  pockets.  And  after  a  time  he 
woke.  He  was  in  the  Adlergasse.  And  of  all 
that  happy,  noisy  family,  only  he  and  Hermann 
left!  In  one  of  the  open  doorways,  for  it  was 
warm,  a  final  caress  of  vanishing  summer,  he  saw 
a  fat,  youngish  woman  knitting  woolen  hose. 


AWHITESCAR  311 

Two  or  three  children  sprawled  about  her  knees. 
There  was  that  petulance  of  lip  and  forehead 
which  marked  the  dissatisfaction  of  the  coquette 
married. 

"Tekla !"  Grumbach  murmured. 

He  was  not  conscious  that  he  had  paused,  but 
the  woman  was.  She  eyed  him  with  the  mild  in 
difference  of  the  bovine.  Then  she  dropped  her 
glance  and  the  shining  needles  clicked  afresh. 
Grumbach  forced  his  step  onward.  And  for  this ! 
He  laughed  discordantly.  The  woman  looked 
up  again  wonderingly.  Now,  why  should  this 
stranger  laugh  all  by  himself  like  that  ? 

Hans  saw  the  sign  of  the  Black  Eagle,  and 
directed  his  steps  thitherward.  He  sat  down  and 
ordered  a  beer,  drinking  it  quickly.  He  repeated 
the  order,  but  he  did  not  touch  the  second  glass. 
He  threw  back  the  lid  and  stared  at  the  creamy 
froth  as  a  seer  stares  at  his  ball  of  crystal.  Car- 
michael  was  right;  he  was  a  doddering  fool. 
What  was  done  was  done,  and  a  thousand  con 
sciences  would  not  right  it.  And  what  right  had 
conscience  to  drag  him  back  to  Ehrenstein,  where 
he  had  known  the  bitterest  and  happiest  moments 
of  his  life?  And  yet,  rail  as  he  might  at  this 


S12          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

invisible  restraint  called  conscience,  he  saw  God's 
direction  in  this  return.  Only  he,  Hans  Grum- 
bach,  knew  and  one  other.  And  that  other,  who  ? 

Fat,  Tekla  was  fat ;  and  he  had  treasured  the 
fair  picture  of  her  youth  these  long  years ! 
Well,  there  was  an  end  to  that.  Little  fat  Tekla, 
to  have  nearly  overturned  a  duchy,  and  never  a 
bit  the  wiser!  And  then  Hans  became  aware  of 
voices  close  at  hand,  for  he  sat  near  the  bar. 

"Yes,  Frau,  he  is  at  work  in  the  grand  duke's 
vineyards.  And  think,  the  first  day  he  picked 
nine  baskets." 

"That  is  good.  But  I  know  many  a  one  who 
can  pick  their  twelve.  And  you  are  to  be  married 
when  the  vintage  is  done?  You  will  make  a  fine 
wife,  Gretchen." 

"And  he,  a  fine  husband." 

"And  you  will  bring  him  a  dowry,  too.  But  his 
own  people ;  what  does  he  say  of  them?" 

"He  has  no  parents;  only  an  uncle,  who 
doesn't  count.  We  shall  live  with  grandmother 
and  pay  her  rent." 

"And  you  are  wearing  a  new  dress,"  admir 
ingly. 

Gretchen  preened  herself.    Hans  dropped  the 


AWHITESCAR  313 

lid  of  his  stein  and  pushed  it  away.  His  heart 
always  warmed  at  the  sight  of  this  goose-girl. 
So  she  had  a  dowry  and  was  going  to  be  mar 
ried?  He  felt  of  his  wallet,  and  a  kindly  thought 
came  into  being.  He  counted  down  the  small 
change  for  the  beer,  slid  back  his  chair,  and 
sauntered  to  the  bar.  Gretchen  recognized  him, 
and  the  recognition  brought  a  smile  to  her  face. 

"Good  day  to  you,  Herr,"  was  her  greeting. 

"When  is  the  wedding?" 

Gretchen  blushed. 

"I  should  like  to  come  to  it." 

"You  will  be  welcome,  Herr." 

"And  may  I  bring  along  a  little  present?" 

"If  it  so  please  you.  I  must  be  going,"  she 
added  to  Frau  Bauer. 

"May  I  walk  along  with  you?"  asked  Hans. 

"If  you  wish,"  diffidently. 

So  Grumbach  walked  with  her  to  the  Krumer- 
weg,  and  he  asked  her  many  questions,  and  some 
of  her  answers  surprised  him. 

"Never  knew  father  or  mother  ?" 

"No,  Herr.  I  am  only  a  foundling  who  fell 
into  kind  hands.  This  is  where  I  live." 

"And  if  I  should  ask  to  come  in  ?" 


THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"But  I  shall  be  too  busy  to  talk.  This  is  bread- 
day,"  evasively. 

"I  promise  to  sit  very  quiet  in  a  chair." 

Her  laughter  rippled ;  she  was  always  close  to 
that  expression.  "You  are  a  funny  man.  Come 
in,  then ;  but  mind,  you  will  be  dusty  with  flour 
when  you  leave." 

"I  will  undertake  that  risk,"  he  replied,  with 
a  seriousness  not  in  tune  with  the  comedy  of  the 
situation. 

Into  the  kitchen  she  led  him.  She  was  moved 
with  curiosity.  Why  should  any  man  wish  to 
see  a  woman  knead  bread? 

"Sit  there,  Herr."  And  she  pointed  to  a  stool 
at  the  left  of  the  table.  The  sunlight  came  in 
through  the  window,  and  an  aureola  appeared 
above  her  beautiful  head.  "Have  you  never 
seen  a  woman  knead  flour?" 

"Not  for  many  years,"  said  Hans,  thinking 
of  his  mother. 

Gretchen  deliberately  rolled  up  her  sleeves  and 
began  work. 

There  are  three  things  which  human  growth 
never  changes:  the  lines  in  the  hand,  the  shape 
of  the  ear,  and  scars.  The  head  grows,  and  the 


A   WHITE    SCAR  315 

general  features  enlarge  to  their  predestined 
mold,  but  these  three  things  remain.  Upon 
Gretchen's  left  arm,  otherwise  perfection,  there 
was  a  white  scar,  rough  and  uneven,  more  like 
an  ancient  burn  than  anything  else.  Grumbach's 
eyes  rested  upon  the  scar  and  became  fixed. 

"Where  did  you  get  that?"  he  asked.  He 
spoke  with  a  strange  calm. 

"The  scar?  I  do  not  remember.  Grandmother 
says  that  when  I  was  little  I  must  have  been 
burned." 

"Gott!" 

"What  did  you  say,  Herr?" 

"Nothing.  You  can't  remember?  Think!" 
tensely  now. 

"What's  all  this  nonsense  about?"  she  cried, 
with  a  nervous  laugh.  "It's  only  a  scar." 

She  went  on  with  the  kneading.  She  patted 
the  dough  into  four  squares.  These  she  placed 
on  the  oven-stove.  She  wiped  her  hands  on  a 
cloth  for  that  purpose,  and  sighed  contentedly. 

"There !    It's  a  fine  mystery,  isn't  it?" 

"Yes."  But  Grumbach  was  shaking  as  with 
ague. 

"What  is  the  matter,  Herr?"  with  concern. 


316          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"I  grow  dizzy  like  this  sometimes.  It  doesn't 
amount  to  anything." 

Gretchen  turned  down  her  sleeves.  "You  must 
go  now,  for  I  have  other  work." 

"And  so  have  I,  Gretchen." 

He  gained  the  street,  but  how  he  never  knew. 
He  floated.  Objects  near  at  hand  were  shadowy 
and  unusual.  A  great  calm  suddenly  winged 
down  upon  him,  and  the  world  became  clear,  clear 
as  his  purpose,  his  courage,  his  duty.  They 
might  shoot  or  hang  him,  as  they  saw  fit ;  this 
would  not  deter  him.  It  might  be  truthfully  said 
that  he  blundered  back  to  the  Grand  Hotel.  He 
must  lay  the  whole  matter  before  Carmichael. 
There  lay  his  one  hope.  Carmichael  should  be 
his  ambassador.  But,  God  in  Heaven,  where 
should  he  begin  ?  How  ? 

The  Gipsy,  standing  in  the  center  of  the  walk, 
did  not  see  Grumbach,  for  he  was  looking  toward 
the  palaces,  a  kind  of  whimsical  mockery  in  his 
dark  eyes.  Grumbach,  even  more  oblivious, 
crashed  into  him. 

Grumbach  stammered  an  apology,  and  the 
other  replied  in  his  peculiar  dialect  that  no  harm 
had  been  done.  The  jar,  however,  had  roused 


AWHITESCAR  317 

Hans  out  of  his  tragic  musings.  There  was  a 
glint  of  yellow  in  the  Gipsy's  eye,  a  flaw  in  the 
iris.  Hans  gave  a  cry. 

"You?  I  find  you  at  this  moment,  of  all  oth 
ers?" 

The  Gipsy  retreated.  "I  do  not  know  you.  It 
is  a  mistake." 

"But  I  know  you,"  whispered  Hans.  "And 
you  will  know  me  when  I  tell  you  that  I  am  the 
gardener's  boy  you  ruined  some  sixteen  years 


CHAPTER    XIX 

DISCLOSURES 

r  1 1  HE  office  of  the  American  consulate  in  the 
M.  Adlergasse  ran  from  the  front  to  the  rear 
of  the  building.  Carmichael's  desk  overlooked  the 
street.  But  whenever  a  flying  dream  came  to  him 
he  was  wont  to  take  his  pipe  to  the  chair  by  the 
rear  window,  whence  he  could  view  the  lofty 
crests  of  the  Jugendheit  mountains.  Directly  be 
low  this  window  and  running  parallel  with  it  was 
the  Biergarten  of  the  Black  Eagle. 

It  is  a  quiet  tonic  to  the  mind  to  look  off,  to 
gaze  at  sunlit,  cloud-embraced  mountain  peaks, 
Walter  Pater  to  the  contrary.  Carmichael's  mind 
that  morning  needed  quiet,  and  so  he  came  to 
this  window ;  and  with  a  smoldering  pipe  let  him 
self  to  dreams.  He  was  still  in  the  uniform  of 
the  royal  hunt,  a  meet  having  taken  place  that 
morning.  He  saw  darling  faces  in  the  rugged 
outlines  of  the  mountains,  in  the  white  clouds 
318 


DISCLOSURES  319 

billowing  across,  in  the  patches  of  dazzling  blue 
in  between.  Such  is  the  fancy  of  a  man  in  love ! 

His  letter  of  resignation  was  on  its  way,  but  it 
would  be  in  November  before  he  heard  definitely 
from  the  department.  By  that  time  the  great 
snows  would  have  blanketed  the  earth,  and  the 
nadir  of  his  discontent  would  be  reached.  But 
what  to  do  till  that  time?  He  could  ride  for 
some  weeks,  but  riding  without  companionship 
was  rather  a  lonesome  affair.  His  own  defiance 
of  the  chancellor  had  erected  an  impassable  bar 
rier  between  her  highness  and  himself.  They 
would  watch  him  now,  evade  him,  put  small  ob 
stacles  in  his  path,  obstacles  against  which  he 
could  enter  no  reasonable  complaint.  A  withered 
leaf,  a  glove,  and  a  fan;  these  represented  the 
sum  of  his  romance. 

Two  figures  moved  in  the  garden  beneath.  At 
first  he  gave  no  attention  to  them.  But  when  the 
two  heads  came  together  swiftly,  and  then  sep 
arated,  both  smiling,  he  realized  that  he  had  wit 
nessed  a  kiss.  Ah,  here  was  the  opportunity; 
and,  by  the  Lord  Harry,  he  would  not  let  it  slip. 
If  this  fellow  meant  wrongly  toward  Gretchen — 
and  how  could  he  mean  else? — he,  Carmichael, 


320          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

would  take  the  matter  boldly  in  his  hands  to  do 
some  caning.  He  laughed.  Here  would  be  an 
other  souvenir ;  to  have  caned — 

He  jumped  to  his  feet,  dropped  his  pipe  on  the 
sill  of  the  window,  and  made  for  his  hat  and 
sword-cane.  The  clerk  went  on  with  his  writing. 
Nothing  the  consul  did  these  days  either  alarmed 
or  distracted  him. 

To  gain  the  garden  Carmichael  would  have  to 
pass  through  the  tavern.  The  first  person  he  en 
countered  was  Colonel  von  Wallenstein.  The 
sight  of  this  gentleman  changed  his  plans  for 
the  moment.  He  had  a  presentiment  that  this 
would  became  rather  a  complicated  affair.  He 
waited.  Wallenstein  spoke  to  Frau  Bauer,  who 
answered  him  with  cold  civility.  She  heartily 
despised  this  fine  officer.  Wallenstein  twirled  his 
mustache,  laughed  and  went  into  the  garden.  Car 
michael  was  in  a  quandary.  What  should  he  do  ? 

Neither  Gretchen  nor  the  vintner  saw  Wallen 
stein,  who  remained  quietly  by  the  door.  He 
watched  them  with  an  evil  smile.  He  would  teach 
this  pretty  fellow  a  lesson.  After  some  delibera 
tion  he  walked  lightly  toward  the  lovers.  They 
did  not  hear  him  till  he  was  almost  upon  them. 


DISCLOSURES  321 

"A  pretty  picture!" 

Gretchen  colored  and  the  vintner  flushed,  the 
one  with  dismay  and  the  other  with  anger. 

"A  charming  idyl !" 

"Leave  us,  Gretchen,"  said  the  vintner,  with  a 
deceiving  gentleness. 

Gretchen  started  reluctantly  down  the  path, 
her  glance  bravely  before  her.  She  knew  that 
Wallenstein  would  not  move;  so  she  determined 
to  go  round  him.  She  was  not  afraid  to  leave 
her  vintner  alone  with  this  officer.  But  she  mis 
calculated  the  colonel's  reckless  audacity.  As 
she  stepped  off  the  path  to  go  round  him  he 
grasped  her  rudely  and  kissed  her  on  the  cheek. 
She  screamed  as  much  in  surprise  as  in 
anger. 

And  this  scream  brought  Carmichael  upon  the 
scene.  He  was  witness  to  the  second  kiss.  He 
saw  the  vintner  run  forward  and  dash  his  fist 
into  the  soldier's  face.  Wallenstein,  to  whom 
such  an  assault  was  unexpected,  fell  back,  hurt 
and  blinded.  The  vintner,  active  as  a  cat,  saw 
Carmichael  coming  on  a  run.  He  darted  toward 
him,  and  before  Carmichael  could  prevent  him, 
dragged  the  sword-cane  away.  The  blade,  thin 


THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

and  pliant,  flashed.  And  none  too  soon.  The 
colonel  had  already  drawn  his  saber. 

"Save  him !"  Gretchen  wrung  her  hands. 

The  two  blades  met  spitefully,  and  there  were 
method  and  science  on  both  sides.  But  the  sword- 
cane  was  no  match  for  the  broad,  heavy  saber. 
Half  a  dozen  thrusts  and  parries  convinced  the 
colonel  that  the  raging  youth  knew  what  he  was 
doing.  Down  swooped  the  saber  cuttingly.  The 
blade  of  the  sword-cane  snapped  like  a  pipe-stem. 
The  vintner  flung  the  broken  part  at  the  colonel's 
head.  The  latter  dodged  it  and  came  on,  and 
there  was  death's  intent. 

Meantime  Carmichael  had  found  a  short  hop- 
pole,  and  with  this  he  took  a  hand  in  the  contest. 
The  pole  was  clumsy,  but  the  tough  wood  was 
stronger  than  steel.  He  hit  the  saber  with  good 
will.  Back  came  the  steel.  The  colonel  did  not 
care  whom  or  what  he  struck  at  now.  When  Car 
michael  returned  the  compliment  he  swung  his 
hop-pole  as  the  old  crusaders  did  their  broad 
swords.  And  this  made  short  work  of  the  duel. 
The  saber  dropped  uninjured,  but  the  colonel's 
arm  dangled  at  his  side.  He  leaned  back  against 
the  arbor,  his  teeth  set  in  his  lip,  for  he  was  in 


DISCLOSURES  323 

agony.  Carmichael  flung  aside  his  primitive 
weapon,  his  anger  abated  none. 

"You're  a  fine  example  of  a  soldier !  Are  you 
mad  to  attack  a  man  this  way?  They  will  break 
you  for  this,  or  my  name's  not  Carmichael. 
You  couldn't  leave  her  in  peace,  could  you  ?  Well, 
those  two  kisses  will  prove  expensive." 

"I  shall  kill  you  for  this !" 

"Bah !  I  have  fought  more  times  than  you  have 
years  to  your  counting,"  with  good  Yankee 
spirit.  "But  if  you  think  I'll  waste  my  time  in 
fighting  a  duel  with  you,  you're  up  the  wrong 
tree." 

"Go  to  the  devil !" 

"Not  just  at  present;  there's  too  much  for  me 
to  do.  But  this  is  my  advice  to  you :  apply  for  a 
leave  of  absence  and  take  the  waters  of  Wies 
baden.  They  are  good  for  choleric  dispositions. 
Now,  I  return  the  compliment:  go  to  the  devil 
yourself,  only  choose  a  route  that  will  not  cross 
mine.  That's  all !" 

Gretchen  and  the  vintner  had  vanished.  Car 
michael  agreed  that  it  was  the  best  thing  for 
them  to  do.  The  vintner  was  no  coward,  but  he 
was  discreet.  Somebody  might  ask  questions. 


324          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

So  Carmichael  returned  to  the  consulate,  equally 
indifferent  what  the  colonel  did  or  where  he  went. 
Of  the  vintner  he  thought:  "The  hot-headed 
young  fool,  to  risk  his  life  like  that !"  He  would 
see  later  what  he  meant  in  regard  to  Gretchen. 
Poor  little  goose-girl !  They  would  find  that  there 
was  one  man  interested  enough  in  her  welfare  to 
stand  by  her.  His  hands  yet  stung  from  the 
contact  of  wood  against  steel,  and  his  hair  was 
damp  at  the  edges.  This  was  a  bit  of  old  war 
times. 

"Are  you  hurt,  Excellency?"  asked  the  clerk 
solicitously. 

"Hurt?" 

"Yes.  I  heard  a  woman  scream  and  ran  to  the 
window.  It  was  a  good  fight.  But  that  fellow — 
acli!  To  run  away  and  leave  you,  an  outsider, 
to  fight  his  battle !" 

"He  would  have  been  sliced  in  two  if  I  hadn't 
come  to  the  front.  A  hop-pole  isn't  half  bad.  I'll 
bet  that  lady's  man  has  a  bad  arm  for  some  time 
to  come.  As  for  the  vintner,  he  had  good  rea 
sons  for  taking  to  his  heels." 

"Good  reasons  ?"  But  there  was  a  sly  look  in 
the  clerk's  eyes. 


DISCLOSURES  325 

"No  questions,  if  you  please.  And  tell  no 
one,  mind,  what  has  taken  place." 

"Very  well,  Excellency."  And  quietly  the  clerk 
returned  to  his  table  of  figures.  But  later  he  in 
tended  to  write  a  letter,  unsigned,  to  his  serene 
highness. 

Carmichael,  scowling,  undertook  to  answer  his 
mail,  but  not  with  any  remarkable  brilliancy  or 
coherency. 

And  in  this  condition  of  mind  Grumbach 
found  him ;  Grumbach,  accompanied  by  the  old 
clock-mender  from  across  the  way,  and  a  Gipsy 
Carmichael  had  never  seen  before. 

"What's  up,  Hans?" 

"Tell  your  clerk  to  leave  us,"  said  Grumbach, 
his  face  as  barren  of  expression  as  a  rock. 

"Something  serious,  eh?"  Carmichael  dis 
missed  the  clerk,  telling  him  to  return  after  the 
noon  hour.  "Now,  then,"  he  said,  "what  is  the 
trouble?" 

"I  have  already  spoken  to  you  about  it," 
Grumbach  returned.  "The  matter  has  gone  badly. 
But  I  am  here  to  ask  a  favor,  a  great  favor,  one 
that  will  need  all  your  diplomacy  to  gain  for 
me." 


326          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"Ah!" 

"For  myself  I  ask  nothing.  A  horrible  blun 
der  has  been  made.  You  will  go  to  the  grand  duke 
and  ask  immunity  for  this  Gipsy  and  this  clock- 
mender,  as  witnesses  to  the  disclosure  which  I 
shall  make  to  his  highness.  Without  this  im 
munity  my  lips  will  be  sealed  for  ever.  As  I  said, 
I  ask  nothing  for  myself,  nothing.  There  has 
been  a  great  blunder  and  a  great  wrong,  too ;  but 
God  sent  me  here  to  right  it.  Will  you  do  this  ?" 

"But  I  must  know  — ,"  began  Carmichael. 

"You  will  know  everything,  once  you  obtain 
this  concession  from  the  duke." 

"But  why  don't  you  want  immunity  for  your 
self?" 

"There  must  be  some  one  for  the  duke  to  pun 
ish,"  heroically ;  "otherwise  he  will  refuse." 

"Still,  suppose  I  bargain  for  you,  too?" 

"When  you  tell  him  my  name  is  Breunner 
there  will  be  no  bargaining." 

"What  has  this  clock-mender  to  do  with  the 
case?" 

"He  is  Count  von  Arnsberg." 

"By  George!  And  this  Gipsy?" 

"The  man  who  bribed  me.   Arnsberg  is  an  in- 


DISCLOSURES  327 

nocent  man ;  but  this  has  to  be  proved,  and  you 
are  going  to  help  us  prove  it." 

All  this  was  in  English;  the  Gipsy  and  the 
former  chancellor  understood  little  or  nothing. 

"I  will  do  what  I  can,  Hans,  and  I  will  let  you 
know  the  result  after  dinner  to-night." 

"That  will  be  enough.  But  unless  he  concedes, 
<3o  not  tell  him  our  names.  That  would  be  ruin 
and  nothing  gained." 

"You  have  me  a  bit  dazed,"  Carmichael  ad 
mitted.  "I  ought  to  know  what  this  blunder  is, 
to  have  something  to  stand  on." 

Grumbach  shook  his  head.  "Later  every  ques 
tion  will  be  answered.  And  remember,  at  this 
interview  Herbeck  must  not  be  present.  It  will 
have  to  be  broken  to  him  gently." 

"Very  well ;  I  promise  to  see  his  highness  this 
afternoon." 

Grumbach  translated  the  substance  of  this 
dialogue  to  his  companions.  They  approved. 
The  three  of  them  solemnly  trooped  out,  leaving 
Carmichael  bewildered.  Alone,  his  mind  searched 
a  thousand  channels,  but  these  were  blind  and  led 
nowhere.  Blunder,  wrong?  What  did  Grumbach 
mean  by  that?  What  kind  of  a  blunder,  and  who 


328          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

was  innocently  wronged?  No  use!  And  while 
he  was  thus  racking  his  mind  he  heard  steps  on 
the  stairs.  These  steps  were  hurried.  The  door 
above  shut  noisily. 

"By  George!  I'll  attend  to  that  this  minute. 
We'll  see  what  stuff  this  yellow-haired  boy  is 
made  of." 

He  mounted  the  stairs  without  sound.  He 
grasped  the  handle  of  the  door,  boldly  pushed  it 
open,  and  entered,  closing  the  door  and  placing 
his  back  against  it. 

The  instant  he  saw  the  intruder  the  vintner 
snatched  a  pistol  from  the  drawer  in  the  table 
and  leveled  it  at  Carmichael. 

"Surely  your  majesty  will  not  shoot  an  old 
friend?" 


irely   your    Majesty  will  not   shoot  an  old   friend?"      Page  328. 


CHAPTER    XX 

THE    KING 

THE  vintner  slowly  lowered  the  pistol  till  it 
touched  the  table ;  then  he  released  it. 

"That  is  better,  your  Majesty." 

"Why  do  you  call  me  that?" 

"Certainly  I  do  not  utter  it  as  a  compliment," 
retorted  Carmichael  dryly. 

"You  speak  positively." 

"With  absolute  authority  on  the  subject,  sire. 
Your  face  was  familiar,  but  I  failed  at  first  to 
place  it  rightly.  It  was  only  after  you  had 
duped  me  into  going  after  the  veiled  lady  that  I 
had  any  real  suspicion.  You  are  Frederick  Leo 
pold  of  Jugendheit." 

"I  shall  not  deny  it  further,"  proudly.  "And 
take  care  how  you  speak  to  me,  since  I  admit  my 

identity." 

329 


330          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"Oho !"  Carmichael  gave  rein  to  his  laughter. 
"This  is  Ehrenstein ;  here  I  shall  talk  to  you  as  I 
please." 

The  king  reddened,  and  his  hand  closed  again 
over  the  pistol. 

"I  have  saved  your  majesty  twice  from  death. 
You  force  me  to  recall  it  to  your  mind." 

The  king  had  the  grace  to  lower  his  eyes. 

"The  first  time  was  at  Bonn.  Don't  you  recol 
lect  the  day  when  an  American  took  you  out  of 
the  Rhine,  an  American  who  did  not  trouble  him 
self  to  come  round  and  ask  for  your  thanks,  who, 
in  truth,  did  not  learn  till  days  after  what  an 
important  person  you  were,  or  were  going  to  be?" 
There  was  a  bite  in  every  word,  for  Carmichael 
felt  that  he  had  been  ill-treated. 

"For  that  moment,  Herr,  I  thank  you." 

"And  for  that  in  the  garden  below?" 

"For  that  also.  Now,  why  are  you  here?  You 
have  not  come  for  the  purpose  of  recalling  these 
two  disagreeable  incidents  to  my  mind." 

"No."  Carmichael  went  over  to  the  table,  his 
jaws  set  and  no  kindly  spirit  in  his  eyes.  "No, 
I  have  another  purpose."  He  bent  over  the  table, 
.and  with  his  face  close  to  that  of  the  king,  "I  de- 


THE    KING  331 

mand  to  know  what  your  intentions  are  toward 
that  friendless  goose-girl." 

"And  what  is  that  to  you  ?"  said  the  king,  the 
smoke  of  anger  in  his  eyes. 

"It  is  this  much :  if  you  have  acted  toward  her 
otherwise  than  honorably Well !" 

"Go  on ;  you  interest  me !" 

"Well,  I  promise  to  break  every  bone  in  your 
kingly  body.  In  this  room  it  is  man  to  man;  I 
recognize  no  king,  only  the  physical  being." 

The  king  pushed  aside  the  table,  furious.  No 
living  being  had  ever  spoken  to  him  like  that  be 
fore.  He  swung  the  flat  of  his  hand  toward  Car- 
michael's  face.  The  latter  caught  the  hand  by 
the  wrist  and  bore  down  upon  it.  The  king  was 
no  weakling.  There  was  a  struggle,  and  Car- 
michael  found  himself  well  occupied  for  a  time. 
But  his  age  and  build  were  in  his  favor,  and  pres 
ently  he  jammed  the  king  to  the  wall  and  pin 
ioned  his  arms. 

"There !  Will  you  be  patient  for  a  moment  ?" 

"You  shall  die  for  this  insult !"  said  the  king, 
as  quietly  as  his  hard  breathing  would  allow. 
He  saw  flashes  of  red  between  his  face  and  the 
other's. 


332          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"I  have  heard  that  before.  But  how?"  ban- 
teringly. 

"I  will  waive  my  crown ;  man  to  man !" 

"Sword-sticks,  sabers  or  hop-poles?  Come," 
savagely,  "what  do  you  mean  by  the  goose-girl?" 

So  intent  on  the  struggle  were  they  that  nei 
ther  heard  the  door  open  and  close. 

"Yes,  my  dear  nephew ;  what  do  you  mean  by 
Gretchen?" 

Carmichael  released  the  king,  and  with  feline 
quickness  stooped  and  secured  the  pistol  which 
had  fallen  to  the  floor.  Not  sure  of  the  new  ar 
rival's  purpose,  he  backed  to  the  wall.  He  knew 
the  voice  and  he  recognized  its  owner. 

"Put  it  in  your  pocket,  Mr.  Carmichael.  And 
let  us  finish  this  discussion  in  English,  since  there 
are  many  ears  about  the  place." 

"His  royal  highness  ?"  murmured  the  king. 

"Yes,  sire !  True  to  life !" 

Carmichael  dropped  the  pistol  into  a  pocket, 
and  the  king  smoothed  down  his  crumpled  sleeves. 

"A  fine  comedy!"  cried  Herr  Ludwig  jovially, 
folding  his  arms  over  his  deep  chest.  "A  rollick 
ing  adventure !  Where's  the  story-book  to  match 
it?  A  kingdom,  working  in  the  dark,  headless; 


THE    KING  333 

fine  reading  for  these  sneaking  journalists! 
Thunder  and  blazes !"  with  an  amiability  which 
had  behind  it  a  good  leaven  of  despair.  "Well, 
nephew,  you  have  not  as  yet  answered  either  Mr. 
Carmichael's  question  or  my  own.  What  do  you 
mean  by  Gretchen  ?" 

"I  love  her,"  nobly.  "And  well  for  you,  my 
uncle,  that  you  come  as  you  do.  I  would  have 
married  her!  Wrong  her?  What  was  a  crown 
to  me  who,  till  now,  have  never  worn  one  save  in 
speech  ?  You  have  been  the  king." 

"Bodies  must  have  heads,  kingdoms  must  have 
kings.  I  have  tried  an  experiment,  and  this  is 
the  result.  I  wanted  you  to  be  a  man,  a  human 
man;  I  wanted  you  to  grow  up  unfettered  by 
power ;  I  wanted  you  to  mingle  with  peoples,  here 
and  there,  so,  when  you  became  their  head  physi 
cian,  you  could  ably  minister  to  their  political 
diseases.  And  all  this  fine  ambition  tumbles  down 
before  the  wooden  shoes  of  a  pretty  goose-girl. 
Nothing  makes  so  good  a  philosopher  as  a  series 
of  blunders  and  mistakes.  I  am  beaten ;  I  admit 
it.  I  did  my  best  to  save  you  from  this  tangle ; 
but  it  was  written  that  you  should  put  your  foot 
in  it.  But  on  top  of  this  you  have  made  a  greater 


334.          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

mistake  than  you  dream  of,  nephew.  The  Prin 
cess  Hildegarde  is  as  fine  a  woman  as  ever  your 
Gretchen.  Mr.  Carmichael  will  agree  to  that," 
maliciously. 

Carmichael  gave  no  sign  that  he  understood ; 
but  there  was  no  mistaking  the  prince  regent's 
inference,  however.  The  recipient  of  this  compli 
ment  stubbornly  refused  to  give  the  prince  the 
satisfaction  of  seeing  how  neatly  the  barb  had 
gone  home. 

"But,  Mr.  Carmichael,  what  is  your  interest 
in  Gretchen?" 

Carmichael  trembled  with  joy.  Here  was  an 
opening  for  a  double  shot.  "My  interest  in  her 
is  better  than  yours,  for  I  have  not  asked  her  to 
become  a  king's  mistress." 

His  royal  highness  bit  his  lip. 

"Uncle !"  cried  the  king,  horrified  at  this  rev 
elation. 

"Mr.  Carmichael  evidently  has  applied  his  ear 
to  some  keyhole." 

"No,  thank  you !  The  window  was  open.  My 
clerk  heard  you  plainly." 

"Uncle,  is  this  damnable  thing  true  ?" 

"Yes.     What  would  you?     You  were  deter- 


THE    KING  335 

mined  to  make  a  fool  of  yourself.  But  rest  easy. 
She  is  ignorant  where  this  offer  came  from,  and, 
moreover,  she  spurned  it,  as  Mr.  Carmichael's 
clerk  will  affirm.  Oh,  Gretchen  is  a  fine  little 
woman,  and  I  would  to  God  she  was  of  your  sta 
tion  !"  And  the  mask  fell  from  the  regent's  face, 
leaving  it  bitter  and  careworn.  "Our  presence  is 
known  in  Dreiberg ;  it  has  been  known  for  three 
days  at  least.  And  in  coming  up  here  I  had  an 
other  errand.  Oh,  I  haven't  forgotten  it.  In  the 
street  there  are  at  least  ten  soldiers  under  the  sub- 
chief  of  the  police;  rather  a  curious  conjunc 
tion." 

The  king  turned  white.  So  it  had  come  at 
last! 

Carmichael  ran  to  the  rear  window.  He 
shrugged.  "There's  half  a  dozen  in  the  garden, 
too." 

"Is  there  any  way  to  the  roofs?" 

"None  that  would  serve  you." 

"Mr.  Carmichael,"  said  the  king,  offering  his 
hand,  his  handsome  face  kindly  and  without  ran 
cor,  "I  should  be  an  ungrateful  wretch  if  I  did 
not  ask  your  full  pardon.  I  am  indebted  to  you 
twice  for  my  life,  little  as  it  amounts  to.  And  in 


336          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

my  kingdom  you  will  always  be  welcome.  Will 
you  accept  my  hand,  as  one  man  to  another?" 

"With  happiness,  your  Majesty.  And  I  ask 
that  you  pardon  my  own  hasty  words." 

"Thank  you." 

"He  is  only  young,"  sighed  Ludwig. 

The  king  emptied  the  drawer,  put  the  contents 
in  his  pack,  tied  the  strings,  and  put  it  under 
his  arm. 

"What  are  you  going  to  do  ?"  asked  the  uncle, 
vaguely  perturbed. 

"I  am  going  down  to  the  soldiers.  I  am  no 
longer  a  vintner,  I  am  a  king !"  And  he  said  this 
in  a  manner  truly  royal. 

"Gott!"  burst  from  the  prince  regent.  "This 
boy  has  marrow  in  his  bones,  after  all !" 

"As  you  will  find,  dear  uncle,  the  day  after  the 
coronation.  You  will,  of  course,  go  down  to  them 
with  me?" 

"As  I  am  your  uncle!  But  the  incarceration 
will  not  be  long,"  Ludwig  grumbled.  "There  are 
ten  thousand  troops  on  the  other  side  of  the 
passes,  and  they  have  been  there  ever  since  I 
learned  that  you  had  gone  a-wooing." 

"Ten  thousand?  Well,  they  shall  stay  there," 


THE    KING 

said  the  king  determinedly.  "I  shall  not  begin 
my  reign  with  war.  I  am  in  the  wrong ;  I  had  no 
business  to  be  here.  Technically  I  have  broken 
the  treaty,  though  not  in  spirit." 

"What  will  you  do?" 

"Tell  the  duke  the  truth.  He  will  not  dare  go 
far." 

"He  will  be  a  good  politician,  too,"  said  Lud- 
wig,  with  a  smile  of  approval  at  Carmichael. 
"No,  boy,  there  will  be  no  war.  And  yet  I  was 
prepared  for  it;  nor  was  I  wrong  in  doing  so. 
Already,  but  for  Herbeck,  there  would  be  plenty 
of  fighting  in  the  passes.  Achl  Could  you  but 
see  the  princess !" 

"I  have  seen  her,"  replied  the  king.  "Heaven 
would  have  been  kinder  had  I  seen  her  months 
ago." 

"Say  to  his  serene  highness,  then,  that  you  are 
willing  to  marry  her." 

"I'm  afraid  you  do  not  understand,  uncle,"  the 
king  replied  sadly.  "I  have  the  supreme  happi 
ness  to  love  and  to  be  loved.  Of  that  nothing 
can  rob  me.  And  for  some  time  to  come,  uncle 
mine,  I  shall  treasure  that  happiness." 

"And  the  little  Gretchen?" 


338          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"Yes,  yes !  I  have  been  a  scoundrel."  And  the 
king's  eyes  grew  moist.  "You  are  happy,  Mr. 
Carmichael ;  you  have  no  crown  to  weigh  against 
your  love." 

"Has  he  not?"  mocked  Ludwig. 

"That,  uncle,  is  neither  kind  nor  gallant." 

And  from  that  moment  Carmichael's  heart 
warmed  toward  the  young  man,  whose  sorrow 
was  greater  than  his  own.  For  the  king  was  giv 
ing  up  the  woman  who  loved  him,  while  Car 
michael  was  only  giving  up  the  woman  he  loved, 
which  is  a  distinction. 

"I  ask  Mr.  Carmichael's  pardon,"  said  Prince 
Ludwig  frankly.  "But  my  temper  has  been  sadly 
tried.  Will  you  grant  me  a  favor  ?" 

"If  it  is  in  my  power,"  said  Carmichael. 

"Go  at  once  to  our  embassy  and  notify  them 
what  has  taken  place." 

"I  will  do  that  at  once.  If  only  I  could  find 
some  way  for  you  to  escape !" 

"There  is  none,"  said  the  king  .  "Come,  uncle ; 
let  us  see  what  is  going  on  down-stairs." 

Carmichael  followed  them  down. 

"There  they  are,  men!"  cried  the  sub-chief. 
"You  are  under  arrest !" 


THE    KING  339 

"I  am  the  king  of  Jugendheit,"  calmly  an 
nounced  Frederick  Leopold.  "Will  you  subject 
me  to  public  arrest  ?" 

"And  I,"  said  the  uncle,  "am  Ludwig,  prince 
regent.  Let  us  go  to  prison  as  quickly  as  possi 
ble,  blockheads !" 

The  sub-chief  laughed  uproariously,  and  even 
the  disciplined  soldiers  smiled.  The  king  of  Ju 
gendheit  and  the  prince  regent !  This  was  a  good 
joke,  indeed! 

"Your  majesty  and  your  royal  highness,"  said 
the  sub-chief,  his  eyes  twinkling,  "will  do  me,  a 
poor  sub-chief  of  the  police,  the  honor  of  accom 
panying  me  to  the  Stein-schloss." 

"Lead  on,  lead  on !"  cried  Ludwig.  "But  wait ! 
I  forgot.  There  can  be  no  harm  in  asking  why 
we  are  arrested." 

"You  are  accused  of  being  military  spies  from 
Jugendheit.  That  is  sufficient  for  the  present." 

"Frederick,  they  do  not  believe  us.  So  much 
the  better !"  Ludwig  pursed  his  lips  into  a  whistle. 

"May  I  retain  this  bundle?"  inquired  the  king. 

"Yes.    I  know  what  is  in  it.  Forward,  march !" 

The  soldiers  formed  into  a  square,  and  in  the 
center  the  prisoners  were  placed.  Carmichael 


340          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

made  as  though  to  protest,  but  Prince  Ludwig 
signed  for  him  to  be  silent. 

"Remember !"  he  said. 

The  king  looked  in  vain  for  Gretchen.  Then 
he  beckoned  to  Carmichael,  and  whispered  bro 
kenly  :  "If  you  see  her,  do  not  tell  her  what  has 
happened.  Better  to  let  her  think  that  I  have 
gone.  And  she  will  see  nothing  in  the  arrest  of 
the  king  of  Jugendheit." 

"I  promise." 

The  troop  marched  along  the  street,  followed 
by  many  curious  ones,  and  many  heads  popped  in 
and  out  of  the  gabled  windows.  Carmichael 
watched  them  till  they  veered  round  a  corner,  and 
then  he  returned  to  the  consulate.  There  he  left 
a  note  for  the  clerk,  telling  him  that  he  would  not 
be  in  the  office  again  that  day.  Directly  after, 
he  hurried  off  to  the  Jugendheit  embassy. 

An  hour  later  Gretchen  appeared  before  Frau 
Bauer.  Gretchen  had  gone  home  immediately 
after  the  termination  of  the  fight  in  the  garden. 
It  had  been  the  will  of  her  lord  and  master  for 
her  to  remain  at  home  throughout  the  day;  but 
this  she  could  not  do.  She  was  worried. 

"He  was  not  hurt,  Frau  ?"  she  asked  timidly. 


THE    KING  341 

"Oh,  no !  The  two  of  them  gave  themselves  up 
readily.  They  are  snug  in  the  Stein-schloss  by 
this  time." 

"The  Stein-schloss!"  Gretchen  blanched. 
"Holy  Mother,  what  has  happened?" 

"Why,  your  vintner  and  Herr  Ludwig  were 
arrested  an  hour  ago,  accused  of  being  spies  from 
Jugendheit." 

"It  is  a  lie !"  cried  Gretchen  hollowly.  She 
groped  blindly  for  the  door. 

"Where  are  you  going,  Gretchen?"  Frau 
Bauer  inquired  anxiously. 

"To  her  highness  !  She  will  save  him !" 

Her  highness  was  dreaming.  She  had  fallen 
into  this  habit  of  late.  A  flame  in  the  fireplace, 
a  cloud  in  the  sky,  a  dash  of  rain  on  the  window, 
all  these  drew  her  fancy.  What  the  heart  wishes 
the  mind  will  dream.  Sunshine  was  without,  clear, 
brilliant;  shadow  was  within,  mellow,  nebulous. 
But  to-day  her  dream  was  short.  A  maid  of  honor 
announced  that  the  young  woman  Gretchen 
sought  her  presence. 

"Admit  her.  She  will  be  a  tonic,"  said  Hilde- 
garde. 

Gretchen  appeared,  red-eyed  and  disheveled. 


THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

Instantly  she  flung  herself  at  the  feet  of  the 
princess. 

"Why,  Gretchen!" 

"They  will  not  let  me  see  him,  Highness!" 
Gretchen  choked. 

"What  has  happened,  child?" 

"They  have  arrested  him  as  a  spy  from  Ju- 
gendheit,  and  he  is  innocent.  Save  him,  High 
ness  !" 

"How  can  I  save  him?" 

"He  is  not  a  spy." 

"That  must  be  proved,  Gretchen.  I  can  not 
go  to  the  Stein-schloss  and  order  them  to  liberate 
him."  She  lifted  Gretchen  to  her  feet. 

"I  have  been  there,  and  they  will  not  let  me 
see  him.  I  love  him  so !" 

"I  can  arrange  that  for  you.  I  will  go  with 
you  myself  to  the  prison." 

"Thanks,  Highness,  thanks!"  Gretchen  was 
hysterical. 

The  Stein-schloss  had  been  the  feudal  keep; 
now  it  served  as  the  city  prison.  Its  grim  gray 
stones  were  battle-scarred  and  time-worn ;  a  place 
of  deep  dungeons,  huge  bolts  and  bars,  and  nar 
row  slits  in  the  stone  for  windows.  The  prison 


THE    KING  343 

was  both  civil  and  military,  but  was  patrolled  and 
sentineled  by  soldiers.  The  king  and  his  uncle 
had  been  given  adjoining  cells  on  the  ground 
floor.  These  cells  were  dry,  and  light  entered 
from  the  modern  windows  in  the  wall  of  the  cor 
ridor.  The  princess  and  her  protegee  were  ad 
mitted  without  objection.  The  sergeant  in  charge 
of  that  floor  even  permitted  them  to  go  into  the 
corridor  unattended. 

Voices. 

"Hush!"  whispered  her  highness,  pressing 
Gretchen's  arm. 

"Ach!  Wail,  dear  nephew,  beat  your  hands 
upon  the  bars,  curse,  waste  your  breath  on  stone. 
Did  I  not  warn  you  against  this  very  thing  when 
you  proposed  this  mad  junket?  Well,  there  are 
two  of  us.  A  fine  scandal!  They  will  laugh  at 
us  for  months  to  come." 

"Woe  to  the  duke  for  this  affront !" 

Gretchen  started  to  speak,  but  the  princess 
quickly  put  her  hand  over  the  goose-girl's 
mouth. 

"Ha !    So  war  is  gathering  in  your  veins  ?" 

"I  will  have  revenge  for  this  !" 

"Good !    Bang — bang !    Slash  and  cut !    War 


344          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

is  a  great  invention — on  paper.  Come,  my  boy ; 
you  were  sensible  enough  when  they  brought  us 
here.  Control  yourself.  Be  a  king  in  all  the 
word  implies.  For  my  part,  I  begin  to  see." 

"And  what  do  you  see?" 

"I  see  that  the  duke  knows  who  we  are,  even  if 
his  police  do  not.  He  will  keep  us  here  a  day  or 
two,  and  then  magnanimously  liberate  us  with 
profuse  apologies.  We  shall  be  escorted  to  the 
frontier  with  honors.  His  highness  loves  a  jest 
too  well  to  let  this  chance  escape.  Besides,  I  see 
in  the  glass  the  fine  Italian  hand  of  Herbeck.  I 
have  always  heard  that  he  was  a  great  statesman. 
Swallow  your  wrath,  even  if  your  tongue  goes 
down  with  it." 

"Gretchen,  Gretchen !"  said  the  king. 

Gretchen  could  stand  it  no  longer.  She 
wrenched  herself  free  from  the  grasp  of  the 
princess,  who,  with  pitying  heart,  understood  all 
now.  Poor  unhappy  Gretchen ! 

"Here  I  am,  Leopold!"  the  goose-girl  cried, 
pressing  her  body  against  the  bars  and  thrusting 
her  hands  through  them. 

"The  devil!"  murmured  the  man  in  the  other 
cell. 


THE    KING  345 

"You  here,  Gretchen  ?"  The  king  covered  her 
hands  with  passionate  kisses. 

"Yes,  yes !  They  have  made  a  dreadful  mis 
take.  You  are  no  spy  from  Jugendheit." 

"No,  Gretchen,"  said  the  voice  from  the  next 
cell.  "He  is  far  worse  than  that.  He  is  the 
king,  Gretchen,  the  king." 

"Uncle!"  in  anguish. 

"Let  us  have  it  over  with,"  replied  Prince  Lud- 
wig  sadly. 

"The  king?"  Gretchen  laughed  shrilly, 
"What  jest  is  this,  Leopold?" 

The  king,  still  holding  her  hands,  looked  down. 

"Leopold?"  plaintively. 

Still  he  did  not  speak,  still  he  averted  his  head. 
But  God  knew  that  his  heart  was  on  the  rack. 

The  princess,  remaining  in  the  background, 
not  daring  to  interfere,  felt  the  smart  of  tears 
in  her  eyes.  Ah,  the  poor  tender  little  goose- 
girl  !  The  pity  of  it !  This  king  was  a  scoun 
drel. 

"Leo,  look  at  me !  You  are  laughing !  Why, 
did  we  not  work  together  in  the  vineyards,  and 
did  we  not  plan  for  the  future?  Ah*,  yes!  You 
are  a  king  only  to  me.  I  see.  But  it  is  a  cruel 


346          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

jest,  Leopold.  Smile  at  me!  Say  something!" 
Gretchen  was  hanging  to  the  bars  now ;  her  body, 
held  in  the  vise  of  growing  terror,  was  almost  a 
dead  weight. 

"Gretchen,  forgive  me !"  despairingly. 

"He  asks  me  to  forgive  him!"  dully.  "For 
what?" 

"For  being  a  villain!  Yes,"  his  voice  keen 
with  agony.  "I  am  the  king  of  Jugendheit. 
But  am  I  less  a  man  for  that  ?  Ah,  God  help  me, 
I  have  a  right  to  love  like  other  men!  Do  not 
doubt  me,  Gretchen ;  do  not  think  that  I  played 
with  you.  I  love  you  better  than  my  crown,  bet 
ter  than  my  honor !" 

"Take  care,  nephew!"  came  Prince  Ludwig's 
warning.  "Some  one  else  is  near." 

"I  care  not!  Before  all  the  world  I  would 
gladly  proclaim  it.  I  love  her.  I  swear  that  I 
'shall  never  marry,  that  my  heart  is  breaking! 
Gretchen,  Gretchen!  My  God,  she  is  falling! 
Help  her!"  wildly;  and  he  shook  the  bars  with 
supernatural  strength  till  his  hands  were  bleed 
ing. 

But  Gretchen  did  not  answer. 


CHAPTER  XXI 

TWIN    LOCKETS 

CARMICHAEL  tramped  about  his  -com, 
restless,  uneasy,  starting  at  sounds.  Half 
a  dozen  times  his  cigar  had  gone  out,  and  burned 
matches  lay  scattered  on  the  floor.  He  was  wait 
ing  for  Grumbach  and  his  confreres.  Now  he 
looked  out  of  a  window,  now  he  spun  the  leaves 
of  a  book,  now  he  sat  down,  got  up,  and  tramped 
again.  Anything  but  this  suspense.  A  full  day ! 
The  duel  in  the  Biergarten;  the  king  of  Jugend- 
heit  and  the  prince  regent  in  the  Stein-schloss ; 
the  flight  of  the  ambassador  to  the  palace,  more 
like  a  madman  than  one  noted  for  his  calm  and 
circumspection ;  Gretchen  carried  into  the  palace 
in  a  dead  faint,  and  her  highness  weeping;  the 
duke  in  a  rage  and  brought  over  only  after  the 
hardest  struggle  Carmichael  had  ever  experi 
enced.  And  deeper,  firmer,  became  his  belief  and 
conviction  that  Grumbach's  affair  vitally  con- 
347 


348          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

cerned  her  highness.  What  blunder  had  been 
made?  He  would  soon  know.  He  welcomed  the 
knock  on  his  door.  Grumbach  came  in,  carry 
ing  under  his  arm  a  small  bundle.  He  was  pale 
but  serene,  like  a  man  who  had  put  his  worldly 
affairs  in  order. 

""Well,  Captain,  what  did  his  Highness  say?" 

"Where  are  your  companions  ?" 

"They  are  waiting  outside." 

"The  duke  agrees.  He  will  give  us  an  audi 
ence  at  eight-thirty.  I  had  a  time  of  it !" 

"Did  you  mention  my  name?" 

"No.  I  went  roundabout.  I  also  obtained 
his  promise  to  say  nothing  to  Herbeck  till  the 
interview  was  over.  Again  he  demurred,  but  his 
curiosity  saved  the  day.  Now,  Hans,  the  full 
story." 

Grumbach  spread  out  on  the  bed  the  contents 
of  the  bundle. 

"Look  at  these  and  tell  me  what  you  see,  Cap 
tain." 

Carmichael  inspected  the  little  yellow  shoes. 
He  turned  them  over  and  over  in  his  hand.  He 
shook  out  the  folds  of  the  little  cloak,  and  the 
locket  fell  on  the  bed. 


TWIN    LOCKETS  349 

"When  did  you  get  this?"  he  cried  excitedly. 
"It  is  her  highness' !" 

"So  it  is,  Captain ;  but  I  have  carried  it  about 
me  all  these  years." 

"What?" 

"Yes,  Captain.  Count  von  Herbeck  is  a  great 
statesman,  but  he  made  a  terrible  mistake  this 
time.  Listen.  As  sure  as  we  are  in  this  room 
together,  I  believe  that  she  whom  we  call  the 
princess  is  not  the  daughter  of  the  grand  duke." 

Carmichael  sat  down  on  the  edge  of  the  bed, 
numb  and  without  any  clear  idea  where  he  was. 
From  the  stony  look  on  his  face,  Grumbach 
might  have  carried  the  head  of  Medusa  in  his 
hand.  The  blood  beat  into  his  head  with  many 
strange  noises.  Btut  by  and  by  the  world  became 
clearer  and  brighter  till  all  things  took  on  the 
rosal  tint  of  dawn.  Free !  If  she  was  not  a  prin 
cess,  she  was  free,  free ! 

The  duke  allowed  the  quartet  to  remain  stand 
ing  for  some  time.  He  strode  up  and  down  be 
fore  them,  his  eyes  straining  at  the  floor,  his 
hands  behind  his  back.  He  was  in  fatigue-dress, 
and  only  the  star  of  Ehrenstein  glittered  on  his 
breast.  He  was  never  without  this  order.  All 


350          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

at  once  he  whirled  round,  and  as  a  sailor  plunges 
the  lead  into  the  sea,  so  he  plumbed  the  very 
deeps  of  their  eyes  as  if  he  would  see  beforehand 
what  strange  things  were  at  work  in  their  souls. 

"I  do  not  recognize  any  of  these  persons,"  he 
said  to  Carmichael. 

"Your  highness  does  not  recognize  me,  then?" 
asked  the  clock-mender. 

"Come  closer,"  commanded  the  duke.  The 
clock-mender  obeyed.  "Take  off  those  specta 
cles."  The  duke  scanned  the  features,  and  over 
his  own  came  the  dawn  of  recollection.  "Your 

eyes,  your  nose Arnsberg,  here  and  alive? 

Oh,  this  is  too  good  to  be  true!"  The  duke 
reached  out  toward  the  bell,  but  Carmichael  in 
terposed. 

"Your  highness  will  remember,"  he  warned. 

"Ha!  So  you  have  trapped  me  blindly?  I 
begin  to  understand.  Who  is  this  fellow  Grum- 
bach?  Did  I  offer  immunity  to  him?" 

"I  am  Hans  Breunner,  Highness,  and  I  ask 
ifor  nothing." 

"Breunner?  Breunner?  Hans  Breunner, 
brother  of  Hermann,  and  you  put  yourself  into 
my  hands?"  The  tone  developed  into  a  sup- 


TWIN   LOCKETS  351 

pressed  roar.  The  duke  took  hold  of  Hans  by 
the  shoulders  and  drew  him  close.  "You  dog! 
So  you  ask  for  nothing?  It  shall  be  given  to 
you.  To-morrow  morning  I  shall  have  you  shot ! 
Hans  Breunner !  God  is  good  to  me  this  night ! 
Thanks,  Herr  Carmichael,  a  thousand  thanks! 
And  I  need  not  ask  who  that  damnable  scoundrel 
is  who  has  the  black  face  and  heart  of  a  Gipsy. 
When  I  recollect  what  I  have  suffered  at  your 
hands !  If  only  the  late  king  were  here,  my  joy 
would  be  complete !" 

"Your  Highness,"  said  Von  Arnsberg  quietly, 
"all  I  have  left  in  the  world  are  these  two  with 
ered  hands,  and  may  God  cut  them  off  if  they 
ever  wronged  you  in  any  act.  I  am  innocent. 
Those  letters  purported  to  have  been  written  by 
me  were  forgeries.  I  could  not  prove  this,  so 
I  have  been  outlawed,  with  the  sentence  of  death 
over  my  head.  But  to-night  I  shall  leave  this 
palace  a  free  man,  and  you  shall  ask  pardon  for 
the  wrong  you  have  done  me." 

There  was  no  fear  in  the  voice;  there  was 
nothing  but  confidence.  The  duke  glared  at  the 
speaker  somberly,  recalling  what  Herbeck  had 
often  said. 


352          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"What  you  say  still  remains  to  be  proved. 
Now,  what  is  at  the  bottom  of  all  this  ?"  was  the 
demand.  "You  men  have  not  obtained  this  in 
terview  for  the  sake  of  affirming  your  innocence. 
Herr  Carmichael,  here,  declared  to  me  on  honor 
that  you  were  in  possession  of  a  great  secret. 
Out  with  it,  without  any  more  useless  recrimina 
tion." 

Hans  replied  not  in  words  but  in  actions.  He 
crossed  the  room  to  the  duke's  desk  and  spread 
out  his  treasures  under  the  flickering  candle 
light.  The  duke,  with  a  cry  of  terror,  sprang 
toward  the  secret  drawer.  His  first  thought  was 
that  the  shoes  and  cloak,  upon  which  only  his 
eyes  ever  rested  now,  had  been  stolen.  He 
straightened.  Nothing  was  missing.  He  glanced 
from  face  to  face,  from  the  articles  on  the  desk 
to  those  in  the  drawer.  He  was  overwhelmed. 
But  he  steadied  himself;  it  was  no  moment  for 
physical  weakness.  Slowly,  ignoring  every  one, 
he  came  back  to  the  desk  and  fingered  the  locket. 
Just  then  it  was  exceedingly  quiet  in  the  room, 
save  that  each  man  heard  the  quick  breathing 
of  his  neighbor.  The  duke  opened  the  locket, 
looked  long  and  steadfastly  at  the  portrait,  and 


TWIN    LOCKETS  353 

shut  it.  Then  he  went  to  the  drawer  again  and 
returned  with  the  counterparts.  He  laid  them 
side  by  side.  The  likeness  was  perfect  in  all  de 
tails. 

"Carmichael,"  he  said,  "will  you  please  help 
me?  My  eyes  are  growing  old.  Do  I  see  these 
things,  or  do  I  not?  And  if  I  do,  which  is  mine, 
and  what  does  this  signify?"  The  tremor  in 
his  voice  was  audible. 

Grumbach  answered.  "This,  Highness.  I  took 
these  from  the  little  princess  with  my  own  hands. 
They  have  never  been  out  of  my  keeping.  Those 
you  have  I  know  nothing  about." 

The  duke  rubbed  his  eyes.     "My  daughter?" 

"The  Princess  Hildegarde  is  not  your  daugh 
ter,  Highness,"  said  Hans  solemnly. 

"Gott!"  The  duke  smote  the  desk  in  despair, 
a  despair  which  wrung  the  hearts  of  those  who 
witnessed  it.  "Herbeck !  I  must  send  for  Her- 
beck!" 

"Not  yet,  Highness ;  later,"  Grumbach  said. 

"But  if  not  Hildegarde —  I  believe  I  must  be 
growing  mad !" 

"Patience,  your  Highness !"  said  Carmichael. 

"Patience !"  wearily.    "You  say  patience  when 


354          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

my  heart  is  dying  inside  my  breast?  Patience? 
Who,  then,  is  this  woman  I  have  called  my 
child?" 

"God  knows,  Highness!"  Hans  stood  bowed 
before  this  parental  agony. 

"But  what  proof  have  you  that  she  is  not? 
What  proof,  I  say  ?" 

"Would  there  be  two  lockets,  Highness  ?" 

"More  proof  than  this  will  be  needed.  Pro 
duce  it.  Prolong  this  agony  of  doubt  not  an 
other  instant." 

"Speak,"  said  Hans  to  the  Gipsy,  who  was 
viewing  the  drama  with  the  nonchalance  of  a 
spectator  rather  than  a  participant. 

"Highness,"  said  the  Gipsy,  bowing,  "he 
speaks  truly.  He  came  with  us.  For  fear  that 
the  little  highness  might  be  recognized  as  we 
traveled,  we  changed  her  clothes.  He  took  them, 
together  with  the  locket.  One  day  the  soldiers 
appeared  in  the  distance.  We  all  fled.  We  lost 
the  little  highness,  and  none  of  us  ever  knew  what 
became  of  her.  She  wore  the  costume  of  my  own 
children." 

"We  shall  produce  that  in  time,"  said  Von 
Arnsberg. 


TWIN   LOCKETS  355 

"Damnable  wretch!"  said  the  duke,  address 
ing  the  Gipsy. 

The  other  shrugged.  He  had  been  promised 
immunity ;  that  was  all  he  cared  about,  unless  it 
was  the  bag  of  silver  and  gold  this  old  clock- 
mender  had  given  him  a  few  hours  gone. 

"I  am  summoning  her  highness,"  said  the 
<duke,  as  he  struck  the  bell. 

"And,  Highness,"  added  Grumbach,  "despatch 
some  one  for  Gretchen,  who  lives  at  number  forty 
the  Krumerweg." 

"The  goose-girl?  What  does  she  know?  Ah, 
I  remember.  She  is  even  now  with  her  highness. 
I  shall  send  for  them  both." 

Gretchen?  Carmichael's  bewilderment  in 
creased.  What  place  had  the  goose-girl  in  this 
tragedy  ? 

"Now,  while  we  are  waiting,"  resumed  the 
duke,  his  agitation  somewhat  under  control,  "the 
proof,  the  definite  proof !" 

"Her  highness  stumbled  one  night,"  said 
Hans,  "and  fell  upon  the  fire.  I  snatched  her 
back,  but  not  before  her  left  arm  was  badly 
burned." 

The  Gipsy  nodded.    "I  saw  it,  Highness." 


356          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

And  that  was  why  Grumbach  went  to  the  mili 
tary  ball  with  opera-glasses!  Carmichael  was 
round-eyed.  But  Gretchen  ? 

"The  Princess  Hildegarde  has  no  scar  upon 
either  arm,"  continued  Grumbach.  "I  have  seen 
them.  They  are  without  a  single  flaw." 

"More  than  that,"  reiterated  the  duke.  "That 
is  not  enough." 

They  became  silent.  Now  and  then  one  or  the 
other  stirred.  The  duke  never  took  his  eyes  off 
the  door  through  which  her  highness  would 
enter. 

She  came  in  presently,  tender  with  mercy,  an 
arm  supporting  Gretchen,  who  was  red-eyed  and 
white. 

"You  sent  for  us,  father?" 

How  the  word  pierced  the  duke's  heart !  "Yes, 
my  child,"  he  answered ;  for  it  mattered  not  who 
she  was  or  whither  she  had  come,  he  had  grown 
to  love  her. 

"I  am  sorry  you  sent  for  Gretchen,"  said  Hil 
degarde.  "She  is  ill." 

Gretchen  sighed.  To  her  the  faces  of  the 
men  were  indistinct.  And,  besides,  she  was  with 
out  interest,  listless,  drooped. 


TWIN    LOCKETS  357 

"My  child,  will  you  roll  up  your  left  sleeve?" 
said  the  duke. 

"My  sleeve?"  Hildegarde  thoughtfully  looked 
round.  Roll  up  her  sleeve?  What  possessed  her 
father? 

"Do  so  at  once." 

"I  can  not  roll  up  this  sleeve,  father,"  blush 
ing  and  a  trifle  angry  at  so  strange  a  request. 

Hans  opened  his  knife  and  laid  bare  her  left 
arm.  She  uttered  a  little  angry  cry.  "How  dare 
you?"  She  tried  to  cover  the  arm. 

"Let  me  look  at  it,  Hildegarde,"  requested  the 
duke. 

To  him  she  presented  her  arm,  for  she  now 
understood  that  a  serious  affair  was  in  progress. 
But  there  was  neither  mole  nor  scar  upon  the 
round  and  lovely  arm. 

"Why  do  you  do  this,  father?  What  is  the 
meaning?" 

No  one  answered ;  no  one  had  the  heart  to  an 
swer.  Without  waiting  for  the  duke  to  bid  him 
continue,  Hans  unceremoniously  ripped  open 
Gretchen's  left  sleeve.  The  ragged  scar  was 
visible  to  them  all.  And  while  they  grouped 


358          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

round  the  astonished  goose-girl  they  heard  her 
highness  cry  out  with  surprise. 

"What  is  this?"  she  said,  pointing  to  the  two 
pairs  of  shoes  and  the  two  cloaks.  She  held  up 
the  locket,  the  twin  of  which  hung  round  her 
neck.  "Where  did  these  come  from?" 

"My  child,"  the  duke  answered,  unashamed  of 
his  tears,  "only  God  knows  as  yet  what  it  means ; 
but  the  outward  sign  testifies  to  a  strange  and 
horrible  blunder.  The  locket  you  hold  in  your 
hand  was  taken  from  you  when  you  were  an  in 
fant.  The  one  you  wear  round  your  neck  is, 
according  to  the  statement  of  one  of  these  men, 
not  genuine." 

"And  the  significance?"  She  grew  tall,  and 
the  torn  sleeve  fell  away  from  her  arm. 

"That  what  is  done  must  be  all  undone.  I 
know  you  to  be  brave.  Strengthen  your  heart, 
then.  I  stand  before  you  the  most  wretched  man 
in  all  this  duchy.  These  men  affirm  that  I  am 
not  your  father.  They  say  that  you  are  not  my 
daughter." 

"And  that  Gretchen  is!"  spoke  Hans.  His 
conscience  was  costing  every  one  something  dear. 

"I?"    Gretchen  drew  closer  to  Hildegarde. 


TWIN   LOCKETS  359 

The  duke  studied  the  portrait  of  the  mother 
and  then  the  faces  of  these  two  girls.  Both 
possessed  a  resemblance,  only  it  seemed  now  that 
Gretchen  was  nearest  to  the  portrait  and  Hilde- 
garde  nearest  to  the  doubt. 

"You  say  she  wore  the  costume  of  a  Gipsy 
child  when  you  lost  her?"  said  the  duke. 

"Yes."  Von  Arnsberg  took  from  under  his 
coat  a  small  bundle  which  he  opened  with  shak 
ing  fingers.  He  had  been  in  the  Krumerweg  that 
afternoon. 

"Why,  those  are  mine!"  exclaimed  Gretchen 
excitedly. 

"You  see?"  said  Von  Arnsberg.  "Would  you 
not  like  to  be  a  princess,  Gretchen?" 

A  princess?  Gretchen's  heart  fluttered.  A 
princess?  She  saw  the  king  shaking  the  bars 
of  his  cell;  she  heard  his  voice  calling  out  his 
love  for  her.  A  princess  ?  She  laid  her  head  on 
Hildegarde's  shoulder.  She  was  weak,  and  this 
was  some  dream. 

"But  who,  then,  am  I?"  asked  Hildegarde. 
There  was  no  sign  of  weakness  here. 

Again  there  was  no  answer. 

"Tell   what   you   know,"   said  Hans  to  the 


360          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

Gipsy.  "Highness,  he  alone  knows  the  man  who 
brought  about  all  this." 

"The  archplotter  of  this  damnable  conspir 
acy?"  The  duke's  eyes  became  alive,  his  face, 
his  whole  body.  Every  beat  of  his  heart  cried 
out  for  vengeance.  "Who  is  he  ?  Tell  me !  Give 
him  to  me,  man,  and  all  of  you  shall  go  free. 
Give  him  into  these  hands.  His  name!"  The 
duke's  hands  worked  convulsively  as  if  they 
were  already  round  the  throat  of  this  unseen, 
implacable  enemy.  He  was  terrible  in  this  mo 
ment. 

The  Gipsy  produced  a  letter.  It  had  to  be 
held  carefully,  as  it  was  old  and  tattered.  The 
duke  read  it.  Beyond  that  it  made  the  original 
offer  it  was  worthless.  The  handwriting  was 
palpably  disguised.  The  duke  flung  the  missive 
to  the  floor. 

"Fool!  Is  that  all  you  have?  Tell  me  what 
you  know,  man,  or  I  shall  have  you  shot  in  the 
morning,  immunity  or  no  immunity !  Quick !" 

"Highness,"  said  the  Gipsy,  thoroughly 
alarmed,  "this  is  how  it  happened.  My  band 
was  staying  at  the  time  in  Dreiberg.  We  told 
fortunes  and  exhibited  an  Italian  puppet-show. 


TWIN    LOCKETS  361 

The  letter  came  first.  I  was  poor  and  sometimes 
desperate.  I  was  to  take  her  away  and  leave  her 
with  strange  people." 

"Ah!"  interrupted  the  duke,  with  despairing 
gesture  toward  Grumbach,  "why  did  you  not 
leave  us  all  in  peace  ?" 

"Highness,  a  great  wrong  has  been  done,  and 
God  brought  me  here  to  right  it." 

"You  are  a  brave  man,"  darkly. 

"I  am  in  your  hands,  Highness,"  sturdily. 
"In  a  mad  moment  I  committed  a  crime.  I  shall 
abide  by  whatever  punishment  you  may  inflict." 

"Continue,"  said  the  duke  to  the  Gipsy. 

"Well,  Highness,  I  would  not  accept  till  I  had 
talked  personally  with  him.  He  came  at  last. 
His  face  was  hidden  and  his  voice  muffled.  But 
this  I  saw ;  when  he  gave  me  the  first  half  of  the 
money  I  was  certain  I  should  know  him  again." 

"How?" 

"By  his  little  finger,  Highness." 

"His  little  finger?"  Von  Arnsberg  repeated. 

The  two  women,  large-eyed  and  bewildered, 
clung  to  each  other's  hand  tensely.  These  were 
heart-breaking  times.  Gretchen's  mind,  how 
ever,  absorbed  nothing,  neither  the  words  nor 


THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

the  picture.  Her  thoughts  revolved  round  one 
thing ;  if  she  were  a  princess  she  could  be  happy. 
But  the  other,  from  under  whose  feet  all  tangible 
substances  seemed  to  be  giving  way,  she  was 
possessed  by  two  thoughts  which  surged  in  her 
brain  like  combatants.  If  not  a  princess,  what 
was  she?  If  not  a  princess,  she  was  free.  She 
stole  a  swift  glance  at  Carmichael,  who  seemed 
far  removed  from  the  heart  of  this  black  busi 
ness  ;  and  had  he  been  looking  at  her  he  would 
have  seen  the  gates  opening  into  Eden. 

"What  was  this  little  finger  like?"  asked  the 
duke,  shuddering. 

"One  time  it  had  been  cut  or  mangled." 

"The  man  was  tall?" 

"Yes,  Highness." 

The  duke  silently  toyed  with  the  little  yellow 
shoes.  Suddenly  he  laughed ;  but  it  was  the  ter 
rible  laughter  of  a  madman.  There  were  death 
and  desolation  in  it. 

"Come,  all  of  you;  you,  Gretchen,  and  you, 
Hildegarde;  come,  Carmichael,  and  you,  Arns- 
berg ;  all  of  you !  Let  us  go  and  pay  a  visit  to 
our  good  friend,  Herbeck !" 


CHAPTER  XXII 

A    LITTLE    FINGER 

r  1 1HE  king  of  Jugendheit,  Prince  Ludwig, 
A  and  the  chancellor  sat  in  the  form  of  a 
triangle.  Herbeck  was  making  a  pyramid  of 
his  finger-tips,  sometimes  touching  his  chin  with 
his  thumbs.  His  face  was  cheerful.  His  royal 
highness,  still  in  the  guise  of  a  mountaineer,  sat 
stiffly  in  his  chair,  the  expression  on  his  face 
hardly  translatable;  that  on  the  king's  not  at 
all.  He  was  dressed  in  the  brilliant  uniform  of 
a  colonel  in  the  Prussian  Uhlans,  an  honor  con 
ferred  upon  him  recently  by  King  William. 
Prior  to  his  advent  into  the  Grand  Duchy  of 
Ehrenstein  he  had  been  to  Berlin.  A  whim,  for 
which  he  was  now  grateful,  had  cozened  him  into 
carrying  this  uniform  along  with  him  on  his  ad 
ventures.  It  was  only  after  he  met  Gretchen 
that  there  came  moments  when  he  forgot  he  was 
a  king.  He  was  pale.  From  hour  to  hour  his 
heart  seemed  to  grow  colder  and  smaller  and 
363 


364          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

harder,  till  it  now  rested  in  his  breast  with  the 
heaviness  of  a  stone,  out  of  which  life  and  the 
care  of  living  had  been  squeezed.  He  rarely 
spoke,  leaving  the  burden  of  the  conversation  to 
rest  upon  his  uncle's  tongue. 

"So  your  royal  highness  will  understand," 
said  Herbeck,  "that  it  was  the  simplest  move  I 
could  make,  and  the  safest.  Were  it  known,  or 
had  it  been  known  this  morning,  that  the  king 
of  Jugendheit  and  the  prince  regent  had  entered 
Dreiberg  in  disguise  and  had  been  lodged  in  the 
Stein-schloss,  there  would  have  been  a  serious 
riot  in  the  city.  So  I  had  you  arrested  as  spies. 
Presently  a  closed  carriage  will  convey  you  to 
the  frontier,  and  the  unfortunate  incident  will  be 
ended." 

"Thanks !"  said  Prince  Ludwig. 

"And  when  you  cross  the  frontier,  it  would  be 
wise  to  disperse  the  troops  waiting  there  for 
you." 

Prince  Ludwig  smiled.  "It  was  only  an  army 
of  defense.  The  duke  had  nearly  twenty  thou 
sand  men  at  the  maneuvers.  I  have  no  desire 
for  war;  but,  on  the  other  hand,  I  am  always 
ready  for  it." 


A    LITTLE    FINGER         365 

"There  will  never  be  any  war  between  us," 
prophetically.  "The  duke  grows  impatient  at 
times,  but  I  can  always  rouse  his  sense  of  justice. 
You  will,  of  course,  pardon  the  move  I  made. 
There  will  be  no  publicity.  There  will  be  no 
newspaper  notoriety,  for  the  journalists  will 
know  nothing  of  what  has  really  happened." 

"For  that  consideration  your  excellency  has 
my  deepest  thanks,"  replied  Prince  Ludwig. 

"I  thought  it  best  to  let  you  go  without  see 
ing  the  duke.  The  meeting  between  you  two 
might  be  painful." 

"That  also  is  thoughtful  of  your  excellency," 
said  the  king.  "I  have  no  desire  to  see  or  speak 
to  his  highness." 

"There  is,  however,  one  favor  I  should  like  to 
ask,"  said  the  prince. 

"Can  I  grant  it?" 

"Easily.  I  wish  to  leave  a  sum  of  money  in 
trust,  to  be  paid  to  one  Gretchen  Schwarz,  who 
lives  in  the  Krumerweg.  She  is  ambitious  to  be 
come  a  singer.  Let  nothing  stand  between  her 
and  her  desires." 

"Granted." 

The  heart  of  the  king,  at  the  sound  of  that 


366          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

dear  name,  suddenly  expanded  and  stifled  him. 
The  stiffness  went  out  of  his  shoulders. 

"Ah,  this  little  world  of  ours,  the  mistakes  and 
futile  schemes  we  make  upon  it!"  The  chan 
cellor  dallied  with  his  quill  pen.  "It  was  a  cyni 
cal  move  of  fate  that  your  majesty  should  see 
the  goose-girl  first." 

"Enough!"  cried  the  king  vehemently.  "Let 
us  have  no  more  retrospection,  if  you  please. 
Moreover,  I  shall  be  obliged  to  you  if  you  will 
summon  at  once  the  carriage  which  is  to  take  us 
to  the  frontier.  The  situation  has  been  amicably 
and  satisfactorily  explained.  I  see  no  reason 
why  we  should  be  detained  any  longer." 

"Nor  I,"  added  Prince  Ludwig.  "I  am  rather 
weary  of  these  tatters.  I  should  even  like  a 
bath." 

The  three  of  them  were  immediately  attracted 
by  a  singular  noise  outside  in  the  corridor.  The 
door  swung  in  violently,  crashing  against  the 
wall  and  shivering  into  atoms  the  Venetian  mir 
ror.  The  king,  the  prince,  and  the  chancellor 
were  instantly  upon  their  feet.  The  king 
clutched  the  back  of  his  chair  with  a  grip  of 
iron:  Gretchen?  Her  highness?  What  was 


A   LITTLE    FINGER         367 

Gretchen  doing  here  ?  Ah,  could  he  have  flown ! 
He  muttered  a  curse  at  the  chancellor  for  the 
delay.  But  happily  Gretchen  did  not  see  him. 

The  duke  came  in  first,  and  he  waited  till  the 
others  were  inside;  then  he  shut  the  door  with 
lesser  violence  and  rushed  over  to  the  chancellor. 

"Herbeck,  you  villain !" 

The  chancellor  stared  at  the  Gipsy,  at  Von 
Arnsberg,  at  Grumbach. 

"Herbeck,  you  black  scoundrel!"  cried  the 
duke.  "Can  you  realize  how  difficult  it  is  not 
to  take  you  by  the  throat  and  strangle  you  here 
and  now?" 

"He  is  mad!"  said  Herbeck,  bracing  himself 
against  the  desk. 

"Yes.  I  am  mad,  but  it  is  the  sane  madness 
of  a  terribly  wronged  man.  Come  here,  you 
Gipsy!"  The  duke  seized  Herbeck's  hand  and 
pressed  it  down  fiercely  on  the  desk.  "Look  at 
that  and  tell  me  if  it  is  not  the  hand  of  a  Judas !" 

"That  is  the  hand,  Highness,"  said  the  Gipsy, 
without  hesitation. 

The  duke  flung  the  hand  aside.  As  he  did  so 
something  snapped  in  Herbeck's  brain,  though 
at  that  instant  he  was  not  conscious  of  it. 


368          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"It  was  you,  you!  It  was  your  hand  that 
wrecked  my  life,  yours !  Ah,  is  there  such  vil 
lainy?  Are  such  men  born  and  do  they  live? 
My  wife  dead,  my  own  heart  broken,  Arnsberg 
ruined  and  disgraced !  And  these  two  children : 
which  is  mine?" 

To  the  king  of  Jugendheit  the  ceiling  reeled 
and  the  floor  revolved  under  his  feet. 

"Villain,  what  have  you  to  say?  What  was 
your  purpose?" 

How  many  years,  thought  Herbeck,  had  he 
been  preparing  for  this  moment  ?  How  long  had 
he  been  steeling  his  heart  against  this  very 
scene?  Futile  dream!  He  drew  himself  to 
gether  with  a  supreme  effort.  He  would  face 
this  hour  as  he  had  always  planned  to  face  it. 
Found  out !  He  looked  at  his  finger,  touched  it 
with  an  impersonal  curiosity.  He  had  forgotten 
all  about  such  a  possibility.  Where  had  he  read 
that  there  is  no  crime  but  leaves  some  evidence, 
infinitesimally  small  though  it  be,  which  shall 
lead  to  the  truth  ?  After  all,  he  was  glad.  The 
strain,  borne  so  long,  was  gradually  killing  him. 
A  little  finger,  to  have  stopped  the  wheel  of  so 
great  a  scheme !  Irony ! 


A   LITTLE    FINGER         369 

"Your  Highness,"  he  said,  his  voice  soft  and 
strangely  clear,  "I  have  been  waiting  for  this 
hour.  So  I  am  found  out!  How  little  we  know 
what  God  intends !" 

"You  speak  of  God?    You  blaspheme!" 

"Bear  with  me  for  a  space.  I  shall  not  hold 
you  long." 

"But  why?  What  have  I  done  to  you  that 
you  should  wreck  all  I  hold  dear?" 

"For  you  I  have  always  had  a  strong  affec 
tion,  strange  as  it  may  sound."  Herbeck  fum 
bled  with  his  collar,  which  was  tightening  round 
his  throat  like  a  band  of  hot  iron.  "I  have  prac 
tically  governed  this  country  for  sixteen  years. 
In  that  time  I  have  made  it  prosperous  and 
happy ;  I  have  given  you  a  substantial  treasury ; 
I  have  made  you  an  army ;  I  have  brought  peace 
where  you  would  have  brought  war.  To  my 
people  God  will  witness  that  I  have  done  my  duty 
as  I  saw  it.  One  day  I  fell  the  victim  of  a  mad 
dream.  And  to  think  that  I  almost  won !" 

"And  I  ?"  said  Hildegarde,  her  hands  clenched 
and  pressed  against  her  bosom.  "What  have 
you  done  to  me,  who  am  innocent  of  any  wrong? 
What  have  you  done  to  me?" 


370          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"You,  my  child?  I  have  wronged  you  great 
est  of  all.  The  wrong  I  have  done  to  you  is  ir 
reparable.  Ah,  have  not  my  arms  hungered 
for  .the  touch  of  you,  my  heart  ached  for  the 
longing  of  you?  To  see  you  day  after  day, 
always  humble  before  you,  always  glad  to  kiss 
the  back  of  your  hand!  Have  I  not  lived  in 
hell,  your  Highness  ?"  turning  to  the  duke. 

"What  am  I,  and  who  am  I  ?"  whispered  Hil- 
degarde,  her  heart  almost  ceasing  to  beat. 

"I  am  your  father  1"  simply. 


CHAPTER  XXIII 

HAPPINESS 

THE  grand  duke  of  Ehrenstein  beheld  the 
chancellor  with  that  phase  of  astonish 
ment  which  leaves  the  mind  unclouded.  The 
violent  storm  in  his  heart  gave  way  to  a  calm, 
not  at  all  menacing,  but  tinctured  with  a  pro 
found  pity.  What  a  project!  What  a  mind 
to  conceive  it,  to  perfect  it  down  to  so  small  a 
detail  as  a  jeweler's  mark  in  the  gold  of  the 
locket!  And  a  little  finger  to  betray  it!  In  a 
flash  he  saw  vividly  all  this  man  had  undergone, 
day  by  day,  unfaltering,  unhesitant,  forgetting 
nothing,  remembering  everything  but  the  one 
insignificant  item  which  was  to  overthrow  him. 
He  felt  that  he  was  confronted  with  a  great 
problem ;  what  to  do  with  the  man  ? 

Prince  Ludwig  took  off  his  hat.  "Herbeck, 
you  are  a  great  politician." 

"No,  prince,"  replied  Herbeck,  with  ineffable 
371 


372          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

sadness.  "Had  I  been  a  great  politician  I 
should  have  succeeded.  Ah,  give  this  to  my 
merit;  self  never  entered  into  this  dream.  For 
you,  my  child,  only  for  you.  And  so  great  was 
this  dream  that  I  almost  made  you  a  queen! 
You  are  my  flesh  and  blood,  the  child  of  my  wife, 
whom  I  loved.  She  was  only  a  singer  in  the 
opera,  at  Dresden,  but  her  soul  was  great,  like 
yours.  It  is  a  simple  story." 

Hildegarde  did  not  move,  nor  had  she  moved 
since  the  revelation.  Carmichael,  a  secret  joy 
in  his  heart,  watched  the  girl  for  the  slightest 
swaying,  that  inevitable  prelude  to  fainting. 
But  Hildegarde  was  not  the  kind  of  woman  who 
faints  in  the  face  of  a  catastrophe,  however 
great  it  might  be.  The  only  sign  of  life  lay  in 
her  beautiful  eyes,  the  gaze  of  which  remained 
unswervingly  fixed  upon  the  chancellor's  ashen 
countenance. 

"Hildegarde,"  said  the  duke,  "you  shall  be 
come  my  daughter,  and  you  shall  dwell  here  till 
the  end  of  your  days.  I  will  try  to  right  the 
wrong  that  has  been  done  to  you." 

"No,  your  Highness,"  she  replied.  "There  is 
but  one  place  for  me,  and  that  is  at  my  father's 


HAPPINESS  373 

side."  And  resolutely  she  walked  to  the  chan 
cellor's  left  and  her  hand  stole  down  and  met 
his  firmly.  "My  father,  I  forgive  you,"  she 
said,  with  quiet  dignity. 

"They  are  all  wrong,  Frederick,"  whispered 
Prince  Ludwig.  "She  is  as  much  a  princess  as 
the  other." 

"You  forgive  me  ?"  The  chancellor  could  not 
believe  his  ears. 

"Yes,  father." 

Then,  recalling  all  the  child-hunger  in  his 
arms  and  heart,  he  swept  her  to  his  breast  con 
vulsively;  and  the  unloosed  tears  dropped  upon 
her  bright  head. 

"And  who  am  I  ?"  said  Gretchen. 

"Breunner,  you  say  this  little  goose-girl  is  my 
daughter  ?" 

"I  solemnly  swear  it,  Highness.  Look  into 
her  face  again  carefully." 

The  duke  did  so,  a  hand  on  either  cheek.  He 
scrutinized  every  contour,  the  color  of  the  eyes, 
the  low,  broad  brow,  the  curve  of  the  chin.  Out 
of  the  past  he  conjured  up  the  mother's  face. 
Yes,  beyond  any  doubt,  there  was  a  haunting 
likeness,  and  he  had  never  noted  it  before. 


374;          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

"But  who  will  prove  it  to  the  world?"  he  cried 
hopelessly,  still  holding  Gretchen's  wondering 
face  between  his  hands. 

"I  shall  prove  it,"  said  the  king. 

"You?    And  how?" 

"I  shall  marry  Gretchen ;  I  shall  make  her  a 
queen.  That  will  be  proof  enough." 

"A  fine  stroke,  nephew ;  a  bold  stroke !"  Prince 
Ludwig  laid  his  hand  upon  the  king's  shoulder 
with  rare  affection. 

"If  you  accept  her  without  further  proof,  I, 
her  father,  can  do  no  less."  And  the  duke  kissed 
Gretchen  on  the  forehead  and  led  her  over  to  the 
king,  gravely  joining  their  hands. 

"Gretchen !"  murmured  the  king. 

"I  do  not  know  how  to  act  like  a  princess." 

"I  shall  teach  you." 

Gretchen  laid  her  head  on  his  breast.  She  was 
very  tired  and  much  bewildered. 

The  duke  paced  the  length  of  the  cabinet  sev 
eral  times.  No  one  interrupted  his  meditation. 
Back  and  forth,  one  hand  hanging  to  the  oppo 
site  shoulder,  the  other  folding  over  his  chin. 
Then  he  paused  with  abruptness. 

"Your  Majesty,  I  regret  that  your  father  is 


HAPPINESS  375 

not  alive  to  accept  my  apologies  for  so  baselessly 
misjudging  him.  Arnsberg,  nothing  that  I  can 
do  will  restore  these  wasted  years.  But  I  offer 
you  the  portfolio." 

"I  am  only  a  broken  man,  your  Highness ;  too 
old." 

"It  is  my  will." 

Arnsberg  bent  his  head  in  submission. 

"As  for  you,"  said  the  duke  to  the  Gipsy,  "go, 
and  if  you  ever  step  this  side  the  frontier  again 
you  will  be  shot  out  of  hand."  He  stopped 
again  in  front  of  Grumbach.  "I  promised  to 
have  you  shot  in  the  morning.  That  promise 
holds.  But  a  train  leaves  for  Paris  a  little  after 
midnight.  My  advice  is  for  you  not  to  miss  it." 

"And  my  father,  your  Highness?"  said  Hilde- 
garde  bravely. 

"Herbeck,  your  estates  are  confiscated,  your 
name  is  struck  from  the  civic  and  military  lists. 
Have  you  any  ready  funds?" 

"A  little,  your  Highness." 

"Enough  to  take  you  for  ever  out  of  this  part 
of  the  world?" 

"Yes,  your  Highness." 

"You  do  not  ask  to  be  forgiven,  and  I  like 


376          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

that.  I  have  judges  in  Dreiberg.  I  could  have 
you  tried  and  condemned  for  high  treason,  shot 
or  imprisoned  for  life.  But  to-night  I  shall  not 
use  this  prerogative.  You  have,  perhaps,  three 
hours  to  get  your  things  in  order.  To-morrow 
you  will  be  judged  and  condemned.  But  you, 
Hildegarde— " 

"No,  your  Highness ;  we  shall  both  take  the 
train  for  Paris.  Gretchen,  you  will  be  happy." 

Gretchen  ran  and  flung  herself  into  Hilde- 
garde's  arms ;  and  the  two  of  them  wept.  Hil 
degarde  pushed  Gretchen  away  gently. 

"Come,  father,  we  have  so  little  time." 

And  this  was  the  sum  of  the  duke's  revenge. 

It  never  took  Carmichael  long  to  make  up  his 
mind  definitely.  He  found  his  old  friend  the 
cabman  in  the  Platz,  and  they  drove  like  mad  to 
the  consulate.  An  hour  here  sufficed  to  close  his 
diplomatic  career  and  seal  it  hermetically.  The 
clerk,  however,  would  go  on  like  Tennyson's 
brook,  for  ever  and  for  ever.  Next  he  went  to 
the  residence  of  his  banker  in  the  Konig  Strasse 
and  got  together  all  his  available  funds.  Eleven 
o'clock  found  him  in  his  rooms  at  the  Grand 


HAPPINESS  377 

Hotel,  feverishly  packing  his  trunk  and  bag. 
Paris!  He  would  go,  also,  even  if  they  passed 
on  to  the  remote  ends  of  the  world. 

The  train  stood  waiting  in  the  gloomy  Bahn- 
hof.  The  guards  patrolled  the  platform.  Pres 
ently  three  men  came  out  of  the  station  door. 
Two  were  officers;  the  third,  Colonel  von  Wal- 
lenstein,  was  in  civilian  dress.  He  was  sullen 
and  depressed. 

Said  one  of  the  officers :  "And  it  is  the  express 
command  of  General  Ducwitz  that  you  will  re 
turn  here  under  the  pain  of  death.  Is  that  ex 
plicit?" 

"It  is."  The  colonel  got  into  his  compartment 
and  slammed  the  door  viciously. 

In  the  next  compartment  sat  Grumbach.  He 
was  smoking  his  faithful  pipe.  He  was,  withal, 
content.  This  was  far  more  satisfactory  than 
standing  up  before  the  firing-line.  And,  besides, 
he  had  made  history  in  Ehrenstein  that  night; 
they  would  not  forget  the  name  of  Breunner 
right  away.  To  America,  with  a  clean  slate  and 
a  reposeful  conscience ;  it  was  more  than  he  had 
any  reasonable  right  to  expect.  Tekla!  He 
laughed  sardonically.  She  was  no  doubt  sound 


378          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

asleep  by  this  time,  and  the  end  of  the  chapter 
would  never  be  written  for  her.  What  fools 
these  young  men  a-courting  were!  War  and 
famine  and  pestilence ;  did  these  not  always  fol 
low  at  the  heels  of  women  ? 

As  the  station-master's  bell  rang,  the  door 
opened  and  a  man  jumped  in.  He  tossed  his 
bag  into  the  corner  and  plumped  down  in  the 
seat. 

"Captain?" 

"You,  Hans?" 

"Yes.    Where  are  you  going?" 

"I  am  weary  of  Dreiberg,  so  I  am  taking  a 
little  vacation." 

"For  how  long?"  suspiciously, 

"Oh,  for  ever  so  long!"  evasively.  And  Car- 
michael  lifted  his  feet  to  the  opposite  seat  and 
prepared  to  go  to  sleep. 

Hans  said  nothing  more.  He  was  full  of  wis 
dom.  He  had  an  idea.  The  fleeing  chancellor 
and  his  daughter  were  on  the  train,  and  he  was 
certain  that  his  friend  Carmichael  knew  it. 

The  lights  of  the  city  presently  vanished,  and 
the  long  journey  began,  through  the  great  clefts 
in  the  mountains,  over  gorges,  across  rivers, 


HAPPINESS  379 

along  wide  valleys,  and  into  the  mountains 
again;  a  journey  of  nearly  seventy  hours.  At 
each  stop  Carmichael  got  out,  and  every  time 
he  returned  Hans  could  read  disappointment  on 
his  face.  Still  he  said  nothing.  He  was  an  ad 
mirable  comrade. 

By  the  aid  of  certain  small  briberies  on  the 
train  and  in  Paris  Carmichael  gathered,  bit  by 
bit,  that  the  destination  of  the  woman  he  loved 
was  America.  But  never  once  did  he  set  eyes 
upon  her  till  she  and  her  father  mounted  the 
gang-plank  to  the  vessel  which  was  to  carry 
them  across  the  wide  Atlantic.  The  change  in 
Herbeck  was  pitiable.  His  face  had  aged  twenty 
years  in  these  sixty  odd  hours.  His  clothes,  the 
same  he  had  worn  that  ever-memorable  night, 
hung  loosely  about  his  gaunt  frame,  and  there 
was  a  vacancy  in  his  eyes  which  was  eloquent  of 
mental  collapse.  The  girl  quietly  and  tenderly 
guided  him  to  the  deck  and  thence  to  his  state 
room.  Carmichael  abided  his  time. 

A  French  newspaper  contained  a  full  account 
of  Herbeck's  coup  and  his  subsequent  flight.  It 
also  recounted  the  excitement  of  the  following 
day,  the  appearance  of  Gretchen  on  the  steps  of 


380          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

the  palace,  and  the  great  shouting  of  the  people 
as  they  acclaimed  her  the  queen  of  Jugendheit. 

The  second  day  out  Carmichael's  first  oppor 
tunity  came.  He  discovered  Herbeck  and  his 
daughter  leaning  against  the  rail.  He  watched 
them  uneasily,  wondering  how  he  might  ap 
proach  without  startling  her.  At  last  he  keyed 
up  his  courage. 

"Good  morning,  your  Highness,"  he  stam 
mered,  and  inwardly  cursed  his  stupidity. 

At  the  sound  of  his  voice  she  turned,  and  there 
was  no  mistaking  the  gladness  in  her  eyes. 

"Mr.  Carmichael?" 

"Yes.  I  was  surprised  to  learn  that  you  were 
taking  the  same  boat  as  myself." 

How  clumsy  he  was !  she  thought.  For  she 
had  known  his  every  move  since  the  train  drew 
out  of  Dreiberg. 

"Father,  here  is  our  friend,  Herr  Carmi 
chael." 

"Carmichael?"  said  Herbeck  slowly.  "Ah, 
yes.  Good  morning." 

And  Carmichael  instantly  comprehended  that 
his  name  recalled  nothing  to  the  other  man's  re 
membrance. 


HAPPINESS  381 

"You  are  returning  to  America?"  she  asked. 

"For  good,  perhaps.  To  tell  the  truth,  I  ran 
away,  deserted  my  post,  though  technically  I 
have  already  resigned.  But  America  has  been 
calling  me  for  some  days.  You  have  never  been 
to  sea  before?" 

"No ;  it  is  all  marvelous  and  strange  to  me." 

"Let  us  walk,  my  child,"  said  Herbeck. 

"You  will  excuse  me,  Mr.  Carmichael?"  she 
said.  Never  more  the  rides  in  the  fair  morn 
ings.  Never  more  the  beautiful  gardens,  the 
music,  the  galloping  of  soldiers  who  drew  their 
sabers  whenever  they  passed  her.  Never  more 
any  of  these  things. 

"Can  I  be  of  any  assistance?"  he  said,  in  an 
undertone. 

"No,"  sadly. 

The  days,  more  or  less  monotonous,  went  past. 
Sometimes  he  saw  her  alone  on  deck,  but  only 
for  a  little  while.  Her  father  was  slowly  im 
proving,  but  with  this  improvement  came  the 
natural  desire  for  seclusion ;  so  he  came  on  deck 
only  at  night. 

The  night  on  which  the  vessel  bore  into  the 
moist,  warm  air  of  the  Gulf  Stream  was  full  of 


382          THE    GOOSE    GIRL 

moonshine,  of  smooth,  phosphorescent  billows. 
Herbeck  had  gone  below.  The  girl  leaned  over 
the  rail,  alone  and  lonely.  And  Carmichael, 
seeing  her,  could  no  longer  still  the  desire  in  his 
heart.  He  came  up  to  her. 

"See!"  she  exclaimed,  pointing  to  the  little 
eddies  of  foam  speeding  along  the  hull.  "Do 
you  know  what  they  remind  me  of?  Mermaids' 
fingers,  grasping  and  clutching  at  the  boat  as 
if  to  drag  it  down  below." 

How  beautiful  she  was  with  the  frost  of  moon 
light  on  her  hair ! 

"You  must  not  talk  like  that,"  he  admonished. 

"I  am  very  unhappy." 

"And  when  you  say  that  you  make  me  so, 
too." 

"Why  ?"    She  had  spoken  the  word  at  last. 

"Do  you  remember  the  night  you  dropped 
your  fan?"  leaning  so  closely  toward  her  that 
his  arm  pressed  against  hers. 

"I  remember." 

"You  put  that  word  then.  In  honor  I  dared 
not  answer.  You  were  a  princess !  I  was  only  a 
soldier  of  fortune.  But  now  that  you  are  in 
trouble,  now  that  you  have  need  of  me,  I 


HAPPINESS  383 

may  answer.  I  may  tell  you  now  why,  why  I 
have  thrown  ambition  and  future  to  the  winds, 
why  I  am  here  at  your  side  to-night.  Need  I 
tell  you?  Do  you  not  know,  and  have  you  not 
known  ?  Am  I  cruel  to  speak  of  love  in  the  mo 
ment  of  your  great  affliction?  Well,  I  must  be 
cruel.  I  love  you !  Faithfully  and  loyally,  now 
and  hereafter,  through  this  sad  day  into  hap 
pier  ones.  I  ask  nothing  for  this  love  I  offer; 
I  ask  only  that  I  may  use  it  in  your  service,  in 
good  times  or  bad." 

"Ask  what  you  will,"  she  whispered.     "I  am 
happy  now !" 


THE  END 


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